1. An interagency delegation from the Republic of Korea will visit the UN Headquarters, South Sudan and Lebanon from July 14 through 22 in order to evaluate the operations and the achievements of the ROK military units dispatched to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) as well as to review the necessity to extend their deployment.

* The 290-strong Hanbit Unit (composed mostly of military engineers) and the 317-strong Dongmyeong Unit (mostly infantrymen) have been deployed to take part in the UNMISS and UNIFIL missions, respectively.

* The interagency delegation will be led by Kim Moon-hwan, Director-General for International Organizations of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and comprised of relevant officials from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Assembly, the Ministry of National Defense, and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

2. The evaluation delegation will first visit the UN Headquarters in New York to debrief officials in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations at the UN Secretariat and consult with them on the operations of PKO units and their future direction. The delegation will then proceed to South Sudan and Lebanon to meet with their high-ranking government officials as well as the Commanders and other key officials of the UNIFIL and the UNMISS. Through the meetings, the delegation will learn about the situations in the countries and evaluations of the operations of the ROK military units.

3. The deployment of the Hanbit and Dongmyeong Unit, which was extended with the approval of the National Assembly last year, is due to expire on December 31, 2014. The ROK government will set its position on the possible extension of the deployment after close interagency consultations based on the outcome of the visit of the evaluation delegation. 


                Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFA

* unofficial translation