1. On March 26, Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha met with the heads of the delegations of the Slovak Republic, the Czech Republic, the Republic of Poland, and Hungary, who visited the Republic of Korea to attend the 5th ROK-Visegrad Group (V4) meeting of deputy ministers for political affairs (or the 5th Republic of Korea-Visegrad Group (V4) Political Directors’ Consultations), and exchanged views on ways to increase cooperation between the ROK and the member countries of the Visegrad Group (V4).

2. The V4 side took note of the growing cooperation between the ROK and the four members of the Visegrad Group in a range of areas, including political, economic and cultural affairs, as well as people-to-people exchanges, and hoped to expand cooperation to cover science and technology, R&D, innovation, the defense industry, and cyber security.

3. Minister Kang said that the V4 countries, members of the EU and NATO, were the ROK’s important cooperation partners, and voiced hope that the two sides would continue to strengthen cooperation in various areas.

o In addition, Minister Kang expressed regret over the EU’s decision to impose safeguard measures on imports of steel products, and asked for the V4 countries’ support to ensure that in the EU’s future review process, the ROK’s position, including the expansion of quota, is positively considered, saying that Korean steel products, as intermediate materials for cars and electronics that are produced and exported by the V4 countries, are contributing to job creation and economic growth in the V4 countries.

4. Minister Kang explained the current situation on the Korean Peninsula and the ROK government’s efforts to establish peace, and expressed appreciation for the V4’s support for such efforts.

o The V4 side said that its visit to the ROK helped it better understand the situation on the Korean Peninsula, and hoped to continue to closely work together with the ROK government to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula.

* unofficial translation