1. The Third High-level Political Dialogue between the Republic of Korea and the EU took place in Seoul on July 26, with First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Kyou-hyun and Helga Schmid, Deputy Secretary-General for Political Affairs of European External Action Service (EEAS), leading their respective delegations.

2. The ROK-EU High-level Political Dialogue is a key bilateral consultative mechanism launched in 2011 to deepen their “strategic partnership” forged in 2010. In the latest meeting, the two sides held an in-depth discussion on matters of mutual concern. The agenda included the progress of the relations between the two that mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations this year and the future direction of their cooperation, the current situation on the Korean Peninsula and coordination of their policies toward North Korea, and the situations in other regions, such as Iran, Syria and Afghanistan.

* Since the launch of the ROK-EU strategic partnership in October 2010 buttressed by the two pillars of the bilateral FTA and the Framework Agreement on Trade and Cooperation, 30-odd bilateral consultative mechanisms in various fields have been at work.

3. The two sides agreed to boost high-level exchanges and put their sectoral mechanisms into full gear so as to become true strategic partners.

º They also agreed to expand their scope of cooperation to include crisis management such as piracy eradication and establish consultation channels on human rights, cyber security and development to strengthen cooperation in those fields.

4. The ROK side took note of the EU’s support for the ROK’s policy toward North Korea and asked it to maintain a leading role in the international community’s united diplomatic efforts to prompt North Korea to change in a positive direction and improve its human rights situation.

º In response, the EU delegation conveyed its support for the ROK government’s Korean Peninsula trust-building process and Northeast Asia peace and cooperation initiative. It also shared the ROK’s view that the international community should send a consistent message to North Korea and expressed its willingness to continue playing a role in leading North Korea to make a sincere change in its attitude in close cooperation with the ROK.

5. The two sides shared their assessments of the situations in the Middle East, -- Iran, Syria, Egypt and Afghanistan -- as well as Southeast and Northeast Asia. They agreed to maintain close cooperation in the Middle East by having their missions stationed in the region share relevant information.

6. The Third ROK-EU High-level Political Dialogue, the first highest-level meeting between the two since the launch of the Park Geun-hye government, is expected to contribute to boosting high-level exchanges and strengthening cooperation on crisis management operations and global issues, including human rights, cyber security and development, with the EU, an important partner for the ROK in pursuing creative economy and paving the way for peaceful reunification.

                             Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFA

* unofficial translation