Korea-Canada Foreign Ministers Hold Phone Call... G7 Invitation Still Uncertain

On May 27, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul held his first phone call with Anita Anand, the newly appointed Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs. Minister Anand took office on May 13. Canada is the chair country for the upcoming Group of Seven (G7) summit to be held next month, but it has not yet been announced whether the Korean leader will be invited.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on this day, during the introductory call, Minister Cho congratulated Minister Anand on her appointment and requested her continued interest and support for the development of bilateral relations. Minister Cho also remarked that "Canada is an important country that can connect the Indo-Pacific region in the west and Europe in the east," and assessed that "in a time when inter-regional security linkages are increasing, Canada has continued to engage for peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region, including by dispatching the Deputy Commander to the United Nations Command."

Minister Anand expressed her hope that "Korea's presidential election will be concluded smoothly," and stated, "I look forward to close cooperation between the new governments of both countries for the development of the Korea-Canada Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP)." She added, "Since Korea is a key partner for Canada in the Indo-Pacific region, let us continue to work closely together to further develop our diplomatic, security, economic, and technological partnerships in all areas."

The two ministers agreed to continue developing the security and economic partnership between the two countries. In particular, they agreed to coordinate so that a phone call between the leaders of both countries can take place as soon as possible after the presidential election in March next month.