[APEC Summit] Yoon “North Korea-Russia military cooperation, a grave threat beyond the Korean Peninsula.”

President Yoon Seok-yeol, who is visiting the United States to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, was photographed on November 16 (local time) at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, where a bilateral meeting with the U.S. president was held. He was with President Joe Biden of the United States and Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan. November 17, 2023. [Photo=Newsis]

[iNews24 Reporter Kim Bo-seon] President Yoon Seok-yeol discussed with the leaders of various countries about the international community’s cooperation measures against North Korea and Russia’s military cooperation on the occasion of the APEC summit.

The presidential office announced that President Yoon held successive summit meetings with Chile, Peru, Japan, Vietnam, etc., who attended the APEC summit on November 16 (local time), and continued such discussions.

Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy director of the National Security Office, said in a local briefing, “In today’s successive meetings, President Yoon emphasized with the leaders of various countries that Russia’s military cooperation with North Korea is a significant threat not only to the Korean Peninsula but also to the world, and discussed cooperation measures against illegal cooperation that undermines the normative order.”

The presidential office did not disclose what specific conversations took place between the leaders.

In an interview with the Associated Press reported on November 14, President Yoon also said, “The military cooperation pursued by North Korea and Russia, which is prohibited by UN Security Council resolutions, not only seriously threatens the security of the Korean Peninsula, Northeast Asia, and Europe, but also undermines the international order based on universal norms.”

After completing Session 1 of the APEC summit, President Yoon attended the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) summit and discussed measures to strengthen cooperation in the supply chain and energy security fields. The IPEF is a consultative body launched under the leadership of U.S. President Joe Biden to jointly respond to new economic and trade issues, including supply chain restructuring, with 14 countries in the Indo-Pacific region, including South Korea, the United States, Japan, Australia, and New Zealand participating.

After the IPEF meeting, there was a separate meeting between the leaders of South Korea, the United States, and Japan. Even after the meeting, the conversation continued in a relaxed atmosphere for about 10 minutes.

According to Deputy Director Kim Tae-hyo, at the meeting, President Biden said, “I was able to lighten my load significantly thanks to President Yoon and Prime Minister Kishida in carrying out my duties as the President of the United States.”

Separately from the South Korea-U.S.-Japan summit, President Yoon and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida sat down for their seventh summit this year. The two leaders evaluated that the diplomatic, security, and economic consultation bodies between the authorities have been restored and agreed to expand exchanges such as study abroad, internships, and employment among future generations. In addition, from next year, as the three countries of South Korea, the United States, and Japan will be active together in the UN Security Council, they plan to strengthen cooperation among the three countries based on the spirit of Camp David on major security issues such as North Korea and Ukraine.

At the summit with Peru’s President Dina Boluarte, celebrating the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations this year, they agreed to strengthen cooperation in various fields such as defense, supply chains, development cooperation, and infrastructure. The summit between the two countries is the first in eight years since 2015.

He also had his first summit after taking office with Chilean President Gabriel Boric. With Chile, which has the world’s largest lithium reserves, they agreed to strengthen cooperation in various fields such as key minerals, defense and defense industry, trade and investment, and infrastructure.

In a meeting with Vietnamese President Vo Van Truong, they agreed to systematically promote exchanges to continue the growth momentum of trade and investment in semiconductors, automobiles, etc., and to expand support to activate youth exchanges.