F.P Report
WASHINGTON: On Thursday, the President of Korea, Moon Jae-in stated that Republic of Korea was chosen in the Biden-Harris administration’s first cabinet-level overseas trip.
During his address, he commented that “We welcome America’s return, the return of diplomacy and revitalization of alliances with the launch of the Biden administration. The international community has look forward to America’s leadership in the midst of multiple crises. For Korea also, we also expect that this will be an opportunity to further strengthen the ROK-U.S. Alliance and advance bilateral relationship”.
He further mentioned that I feel the situation in America is rapidly stabilizing, thanks to the special rollout of vaccines.
Moreover, applications for America’s economic recovery are increasing with the historic stimulus package. I believe these achievements are a testament to the Biden administration’s leadership, my congratulations on your move forward swiftly in Building Back Better, and I look forward to working with you to create a better future together, he added.
Commenting on US-ROK Alliance he remarked that as a 70-year partner to the United States this year, core values and basic ideals such as democracy and human rights, Korea is ready to work with the U.S. to meet common challenges. In particular, we will continue to coordinate closely with no daylight between us for complete denuclearization of and establishing lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula, he said.
We had a separate ministerial with you yesterday, and today a 2+2 ministerial meeting took place for the first time in five years, the President commented.
A Special Measures Agreement was initialed as well. For a solid foundation has been made for the stable development of the ROK-U.S. Alliance at the beginning of the Biden administration, he said.
On the other hand, Secretary of State Austin commented that President Biden wanted us to underscore the importance that we attach to the alliance with South Korea and to the work that we are doing together, not just to reaffirm that alliance but to build on it for the future.
Blinken also commended ROK for the remarkable leadership of South Korea in dealing with COVID-19. We’re inspired by the work that you’ve done and we really appreciate the assistance you provided the United States from early on, he said.
On the occasion, Secretary of Defense Austin commented that our commitment to the U.S.-ROK Alliance is ironclad.
He also mentioned that in the face of today’s shifting global dynamics, this alliance is important now more than ever.
