1. The 28th session of the ASEAN-ROK Dialogue, an annual deputy-ministerial meeting between the Republic of Korea and the ASEAN Member States, was held on April 4. This year's dialogue provided an opportunity for reviewing the progress in cooperation between the ROK and ASEAN toward the establishment of an ASEAN-ROK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP), the highest level of partnership, on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of the ASEAN-ROK dialogue relations this year, and for exchanging views on directions for future development as well as regional and global issues.

※ The ROK participants included Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Chung Byung-won (chief representative), Director-General for ASEAN and Southeast Asian Affairs Kim Dong-bae, Director-General for North Korean Nuclear Affairs Lee Jun-il, and Minister at the Mission of the ROK to ASEAN Park Yoonjoo.

※ The ASEAN side consisted of approximately 40 people including senior officials from the 10 ASEAN member states and Timor-Leste as well as the Deputy Secretary-General of ASEAN for Political-Security Community.

※ The Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) is the highest level of partnership between ASEAN and its dialogue partners. Efforts are underway to establish the ASEAN-ROK CSP at the bilateral summit this October.

2. Deputy Minister Chung emphasized in his opening remarks that this year is a significant one in which tasks in the eight Priority Areas of the ROK government's "Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative (KASI)" are in full gear and efforts are underway to take the ROK-ASEAN relations to the next level. He stated that the ROK government, as ASEAN’s true friend, will continue to strengthen strategic cooperation as well as beneficial and substantive partnership in addressing challenges such as digital transformation and climate change.

*KASI (Korea-ASEAN Solidarity Initiative) Eight Core Lines of Effort: 1) Upgrade ASEAN-ROK Partnership and Strengthen Bilateral Relations with ASEAN Member States, 2) Enhance ASEAN-ROK Cooperation within ASEAN-led Mechanisms, 3) Expand ASEAN-ROK Comprehensive Security Cooperation, 4) Promote ASEAN-ROK Strategic Coordination, 5) Expand Cooperation in Future and Emerging Areas for Shared Prosperity and Development, 6) Jointly Address and Respond to Regional and Global Challenges, 7) Promote Future Generation Exchanges as Drivers of Future Prosperity, 8) Increase ASEAN-ROK Cooperation Resources

° Furthermore, Deputy Minister Chung explained that KASI, which covers both traditional and non-traditional security and future development areas, will contribute to strengthening the ASEAN Community Vision 2025 based on three pillars (the Political-Security, Economic, and Socio-Cultural Communities).

° He particularly noted the continuous expansion of trade and investment between the ROK and ASEAN amid the uncertainty of the global economy and stressed the need for increased collaboration in future industries such as those related to digital transformation, electric vehicles (EVs) and smart cities, as well as the need for stronger cooperation for the stability and resilience of supply chains.

° Moreover, he asked the ASEAN Member States to render support for the successful launch and implementation of signature projects under KASI such as the "Korea-ASEAN Digital Innovation Flagship (KADIF)" and the "Partnership for the ASEAN-ROK Methane Action (PARMA)."

*The Korea-ASEAN Digital Innovation Flagship (KADIF) project is designed to support ASEAN's digital innovation by establishing tailored AI-related infrastructure and supporting the development of human resources based on an analysis of ASEAN's conditions for digital transformation.

*The Partnership for the ASEAN-ROK Methane Action (PARMA) project consists of various subprojects aimed at supporting all ASEAN member states’ efforts for climate change mitigation, methane reduction, and carbon credit generation.

3. ASEAN expressed appreciation to the ROK for its consistent prioritization of ASEAN in its foreign policy and noted that the ASEAN-ROK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, when established, will help further advance their cooperation. Lao PDR, the ASEAN Chair for this year, expressed strong support for the upgrade of the ROK-ASEAN relations to the CSP and hoped for deeper bilateral cooperation in areas such as infrastructure, environment, digitalization and women in line with "Enhancing Connectivity and Resilience," the theme of this year's ASEAN Chairmanship.

4. Moreover, participants exchanged views on major regional and global issues including the situation on the Korean Peninsula, developments in the South China Sea, the issue of Myanmar, the Israel-Hamas conflict, and the war in Ukraine.

5. The ROK explained that the DPRK's continued nuclear and missile development and provocations pose a threat to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and beyond, including Southeast Asia, and ASEAN shared the ROK’s view. The ROK emphasized the need to block North Korea's illicit revenue generation, such as through malicious cyber activities, dispatch of workers overseas, and ship-to-ship transfers, to dissuade it from nuclear and missile development. The ROK reiterated its commitment to realize a free, unified Korean Peninsula despite North Korea's recent rejection of one-kinship and unification, and requested ASEAN's support in that regard. ASEAN reaffirmed its support for the ROK's policy towards North Korea, including the "Audacious Initiative."