1. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met with her Austrian counterpart Sebastian Kurz on September 20 on the sidelines of the 72nd session of the UN General Assembly, and discussed North Korea’s sixth nuclear test, and ways to enhance friendship and cooperation between the ROK and Austria.

2. Minister Kang strongly condemned the reckless provocations that North Korea is continuing in defiance of the international community’s expectations, including the North’s sixth nuclear test and launches of various ballistic missiles. She also stressed the need for strong and substantial measures to respond to North Korea, and offered to closely work together with Austria to ensure a thorough implementation of the new Security Council resolution containing stronger and more effective sanctions against North Korea.

3. Minister Kurz stressed that Austria strongly condemns North Korea’s sixth nuclear test, and said that his country will actively support the ROK government’s efforts to solve the North Korean nuclear problem.

4. The two Ministers hoped that with this year marking the 125th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two countries, their relations will continue to be further advanced at bilateral, regional and global levels.

o Minister Kurz said that the ROK is one of Austria’s major trading partners among non-EU countries, and expressed hope that economic and trade cooperation between the two countries will continue to expand.

o Minister Kang welcomed the Austrian top-level official’s plan to attend the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games, and hoped that the Winter Games will serve as an opportunity to bring renewed attention of the international community to peace on the Korean Peninsula.


* unofficial translation