1. The 13th Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum will take place in Kuwait on November 6 and 7, co-hosted by the Jeju Peace Institute (JPI), the Korea-Arab Society (KAS) and the Diplomatic Center for Strategic Studies (DCSS) of Kuwait with the support of the Foreign Ministry.

2. The Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum, a track-1.5 forum participated by the private and public sectors and launched in 2003, has taken place in the Republic of Korea and the Middle East on a rotational basis. Its upcoming round will bring together former Foreign Minister Reyad Yassin of Yemen, Assistant to the Foreign Minister for Asia Mazen Shamiyah of Palestine, Secretary-General of the Royal Charity Organization Mustafa Al Sayed of Bahrain and former President of Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security Shin Bong-kil and other ROK governmental officials and experts related to the Middle East.

3. At the forum’s opening ceremony, Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Kim Hyoung-zhin will deliver a keynote speech, in which he will bring attention to the relationship between the ROK and the Middle East and explain the ROK government’s policy toward the Middle East.

4. The forum is expected to serve as an opportunity for the participants to learn more about Middle East issues, including the civil war in Syria, the Iran nuclear deal and ISIL, that are highly related to international security and the situation on the Korean Peninsula; and to discuss in depth ways for the ROK and the Middle East to work more closely together in various fields.


* unofficial translation