On June 10, Lee Jae-myung, President of the ‘Republic of Korea (‘ROK’)’ held a summit meeting in Brussels, Belgium, with António Costa, President of the European Council, and von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, and agreed on mutual cooperation in the fields of economy and security.
The joint statement released after the meeting consisted of 36 articles, notably including content condemning the military cooperation between the DPRK and Russia.
The leaders agreed on establishing a new ‘ROK’-EU economic dialogue, signing the ‘ROK’-EU Digital Trade Agreement, pursuing the establishment of a competitiveness partnership, launching negotiations for a security of information agreement, signing an artificial intelligence cooperation document, launching a high-level energy dialogue, and the entry into force of negotiations for a Passenger Name Record (PNR) agreement to counter terrorism and serious crimes.
In addition, the joint statement expressed the position: “We condemn support by third parties, in particular the DPRK, which enable Russia to sustain its
war of aggression against Ukraine. We strongly condemn Russia-DPRK illegal military cooperation.”
It continued by “We stress the importance of a full cease-fire … We are committed to support Ukraine’s recovery and reconstruction” while stating, “We urge Russia and the DPRK to immediately cease all such activities and abide by the UN Charter and all relevant United Nations Security Council resolutions.”
Regarding the DPRK’s nuclear and missile programs, the statement noted: “The DPRK must return at an early date to full compliance with the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT) as a non-nuclear-weapon State and with the IAEA Comprehensive Safeguards Agreement, and bring into force the Additional Protocol.”
In relation to China, a clause was included stating, “We stress the importance of preserving peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and oppose unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific.”
On the war in West Asia, it mentioned, “We call for de-escalation and restraint, ensuring freedom of navigation and safe transit passage in the Strait of Hormuz, the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure, and the need for all parties to fully respect international law, including international law of the sea as reflected in the UNCLOS.”
