March 12
March 12 - March 25, 2015
The Korea Chair team takes a biweekly look at events of interest in Washington, Seoul, and the region. U.S.-ROK RELATIONS Assistant Secretary for EAP Daniel Russel in Seoul Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP) Daniel Russel was in Seoul from March 15 to 17, where he met with Ambassador Mark Lippert and with ROK officials including Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Lee Kyung-soo, First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong, and Blue House officials. High on his agenda were discussions regarding the planned visit by President Park Geun-hye to the United States. ECONOMICS AND TRADE Fifth Ministerial Meeting on the Economy On March 20, Choi Kyung-hwan, deputy prime minister and minister of strategy and finance, delivered keynote remarks at the Fifth Ministerial Meeting on the Economy. Choi noted consumption continues to be weak due structural issues and said the government will pursue reforms in the areas of labor, education, and the financial and public sectors. To revitalize the economy and stimulate private-sector R&D investment, the government plans to move up spending of 3 trillion won to the first half of 2015. One trillion will come from the October 2014 stimulus package of 46 trillion won. Bank of Korea Reduces Interest Rate to Support Economy On March 12, the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Korea lowered the base rate by 25 basis points to 1.75%, a record low, sighting declining exports and sluggish domestic demand activities. The decisions came as a surprise to many analysts. In 2014, the committee lowered the base rate twice. CHINA-KOREA RELATIONS Assistant Foreign Minister of China Visits South Korea Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Jianchao of China visited the Republic of Korea from March 15 through 18. Liu met with Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Lee Kyung-soo and with First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong. Liu said discussions covered terminal high-altitude area defense (THAAD) systems and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). ROK-China Discussion on Sidelines of Trilateral FM Meeting During the Seventh Trilateral Foreign Ministers Meeting on March 21, ROK foreign minister Yun Byung-se met with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, to discuss recent progress on the ROK-China strategic partnership, including the free trade agreement, which was initialed on February 25. They also discussed the bilateral consular agreement that was signed July 3, 2014 and will come into effect April 12, 2015.
CJK Seventh Trilateral Foreign Ministers MeeƟng On March 21, Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea Yun Byung‐se, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi of the People’s Republic of China, held their Seventh Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Mee ng in Seoul. This was the first such mee ng in two years. The last was held in April 2013. They discussed tri‐ lateral coopera on, the poten al resump on of the Six‐ Party Talks, and con nuing efforts to hold a Trilateral Sum‐ mit in the near future. Photo credit: ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs .
ROK–New Zealand FTA Agreement President Park Geun‐hye and Prime Minister John Key officially signed the ROK‐New Zealand FTA on March 23, 2015. Prime Minister Key visited the ROK from March 22 to 24, his fourth visit since 2010. Under the agreement, the ROK will remove tariffs on 96.4 percent of all New Zea‐ land products within the next 15 years and New Zealand will remove tariffs on all South Korean goods within 7 years. Photo credit: ylovesea’s Naver blog.
KOREA CHAIR MONITOR | 2
NORTH KOREA U.S. Treasury Issues Updated Advisory on DPRK The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued an advisory on March 16 updating the list of countries deficient in complying with international Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing (AML/CFT) standards. The report notes North Korea’s deficiencies in its standards requires U.S. financial systems to respond with countermeasures. New PRC Ambassador to DPRK President Xi Jinping of China officially appointed Li Jinjun on March 18 as the new Chinese ambassador to North Korea. Mr. Li was formerly a vice minister in the International Department of the Communist Party of China. North Korea Fires Seven Missiles into East Sea North Korea fired seven surface-to-air missiles into the East Sea on March 13 as a protest against ongoing U.S.-ROK military exercises. DPRK Foreign Ministry Delegation Visits Cuba DPRK foreign minister Ri Su Yong visited Cuba on March 15 to commemorate the 55th anniversary of bilateral relations. He also met with Cuban minister of foreign affairs Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla.
Kim Jong Un to AƩend May CelebraƟons in Moscow On March 17, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov of Russia announced the DPRK has confirmed Kim Jong‐ un’s par cipa on in the 70th anniversary event cele‐ bra ng the end of World War II in Moscow on May 9. It will be Kim’s first official foreign visit since coming to power. Leaders of 26 na ons have confirmed their par‐ cipa on, including President Xi Jinping of China. Earlier on March 11, North Korea and Russia declared 2015 a “Friendship Year.” Photo credit: John Leach’s Flickr.
GLOBAL RELATIONS KOICA and Special Olympics Sign Agreement for Cooperation On March 10, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) signed a basic framework in Washington for a cooperation agreement with the Special Olympics. The agreement provides a basis for joint programs to support improved health status and standard of living for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and to reduce poverty, discrimination, and health disparities. Korea Completes Emergency Ebola Response On March 23, South Korea completed its three-month emergency rescue activities for Ebola with the return of the third Korea Disaster Response Team from to Sierra Leone. Korea dispatched a total of 24 medical workers and 11 support personnel.
Colombian Defense Minister Visits South Korea On March 10, Juan Carlos Pinzón Bueno, the defense minister of Colombia, visited Seoul. He and his ROK counterpart Han Min‐koo signed a bilateral defense coopera on MOU. Photo credit: Pedro Szekely’s photostream.
Looking Ahead Our Friday morning preview of events to watch in the weeks ahead.
March 26| The ROK and Mongolia will hold the first intergovernmental consultative meeting in 25 years in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
March 26–28| Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey will be in South Korea to discuss the U.S.-ROK alliance.
March 28–April 1| U.S.-ROK joint landing drill Ssangyong will take place in Pohang as part of the ongoing Foal Eagle military exercise.
Mid-April| The Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialouge (KIDD) will take place in Washington, D.C.
KOREA CHAIR MONITOR CSIS Office of the Korea Chair contributors: Victor Cha, Senior Adviser and Chair Ellen Kim, Assistant Director and Fellow Marie DuMond, Research Associate Andy Lim, Senior Research Intern Na Young Lee, KF‐CSIS Junior Researcher Heeyoun Baek, Research Intern Mia Gregory, Research Intern Junhee Kang, Research Intern Sophia Zhang, Research Intern For more details on our programs and real‐ me updates from CSIS, follow the CSIS Office of the Korea Chair on: Facebook at h p://www.facebook.com/csiskoreachair Twi er at @CSISKoreaChair Our website at h p://csis.org/program/korea‐chair iTunesU using your iPad or iPhone at h p://itunes.com/csis.
KoreaChair Monitor is a biweekly publica on of the CSIS Office of the Korea Chair, available online. CSIS is a private, nonprofit ins tu on headquartered in Washington, D.C., focusing on inter‐ na onal public policy issues. Its research is nonpar san and nonproprietary. CSIS does not take specific policy posi ons; accordingly, all views expressed in this publica on should be understood to be solely those of the author(s). © 2015 by the Center for Strategic and Interna onal Studies. All rights reserved.
The Korea Chair team takes a biweekly look at events of interest in Washington, Seoul, and the region. U.S.-ROK RELATIONS Assistant Secretary for EAP Daniel Russel in Seoul Assistant Secretary for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (EAP) Daniel Russel was in Seoul from March 15 to 17, where he met with Ambassador Mark Lippert and with ROK officials including Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Lee Kyung-soo, First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong, and Blue House officials. High on his agenda were discussions regarding the planned visit by President Park Geun-hye to the United States. ECONOMICS AND TRADE Fifth Ministerial Meeting on the Economy On March 20, Choi Kyung-hwan, deputy prime minister and minister of strategy and finance, delivered keynote remarks at the Fifth Ministerial Meeting on the Economy. Choi noted consumption continues to be weak due structural issues and said the government will pursue reforms in the areas of labor, education, and the financial and public sectors. To revitalize the economy and stimulate private-sector R&D investment, the government plans to move up spending of 3 trillion won to the first half of 2015. One trillion will come from the October 2014 stimulus package of 46 trillion won. Bank of Korea Reduces Interest Rate to Support Economy On March 12, the Monetary Policy Committee of the Bank of Korea lowered the base rate by 25 basis points to 1.75%, a record low, sighting declining exports and sluggish domestic demand activities. The decisions came as a surprise to many analysts. In 2014, the committee lowered the base rate twice. CHINA-KOREA RELATIONS Assistant Foreign Minister of China Visits South Korea Assistant Foreign Minister Liu Jianchao of China visited the Republic of Korea from March 15 through 18. Liu met with Deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs Lee Kyung-soo and with First Vice Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yong. Liu said discussions covered terminal high-altitude area defense (THAAD) systems and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). ROK-China Discussion on Sidelines of Trilateral FM Meeting During the Seventh Trilateral Foreign Ministers Meeting on March 21, ROK foreign minister Yun Byung-se met with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, to discuss recent progress on the ROK-China strategic partnership, including the free trade agreement, which was initialed on February 25. They also discussed the bilateral consular agreement that was signed July 3, 2014 and will come into effect April 12, 2015.
CJK Seventh Trilateral Foreign Ministers MeeƟng On March 21, Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea Yun Byung‐se, Foreign Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, and Foreign Minister Wang Yi of the People’s Republic of China, held their Seventh Trilateral Foreign Ministers’ Mee ng in Seoul. This was the first such mee ng in two years. The last was held in April 2013. They discussed tri‐ lateral coopera on, the poten al resump on of the Six‐ Party Talks, and con nuing efforts to hold a Trilateral Sum‐ mit in the near future. Photo credit: ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs .
ROK–New Zealand FTA Agreement President Park Geun‐hye and Prime Minister John Key officially signed the ROK‐New Zealand FTA on March 23, 2015. Prime Minister Key visited the ROK from March 22 to 24, his fourth visit since 2010. Under the agreement, the ROK will remove tariffs on 96.4 percent of all New Zea‐ land products within the next 15 years and New Zealand will remove tariffs on all South Korean goods within 7 years. Photo credit: ylovesea’s Naver blog.
KOREA CHAIR MONITOR | 2
NORTH KOREA U.S. Treasury Issues Updated Advisory on DPRK The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued an advisory on March 16 updating the list of countries deficient in complying with international Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing (AML/CFT) standards. The report notes North Korea’s deficiencies in its standards requires U.S. financial systems to respond with countermeasures. New PRC Ambassador to DPRK President Xi Jinping of China officially appointed Li Jinjun on March 18 as the new Chinese ambassador to North Korea. Mr. Li was formerly a vice minister in the International Department of the Communist Party of China. North Korea Fires Seven Missiles into East Sea North Korea fired seven surface-to-air missiles into the East Sea on March 13 as a protest against ongoing U.S.-ROK military exercises. DPRK Foreign Ministry Delegation Visits Cuba DPRK foreign minister Ri Su Yong visited Cuba on March 15 to commemorate the 55th anniversary of bilateral relations. He also met with Cuban minister of foreign affairs Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla.
Kim Jong Un to AƩend May CelebraƟons in Moscow On March 17, Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergey Lavrov of Russia announced the DPRK has confirmed Kim Jong‐ un’s par cipa on in the 70th anniversary event cele‐ bra ng the end of World War II in Moscow on May 9. It will be Kim’s first official foreign visit since coming to power. Leaders of 26 na ons have confirmed their par‐ cipa on, including President Xi Jinping of China. Earlier on March 11, North Korea and Russia declared 2015 a “Friendship Year.” Photo credit: John Leach’s Flickr.
GLOBAL RELATIONS KOICA and Special Olympics Sign Agreement for Cooperation On March 10, the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) signed a basic framework in Washington for a cooperation agreement with the Special Olympics. The agreement provides a basis for joint programs to support improved health status and standard of living for children and adults with intellectual disabilities and to reduce poverty, discrimination, and health disparities. Korea Completes Emergency Ebola Response On March 23, South Korea completed its three-month emergency rescue activities for Ebola with the return of the third Korea Disaster Response Team from to Sierra Leone. Korea dispatched a total of 24 medical workers and 11 support personnel.
Colombian Defense Minister Visits South Korea On March 10, Juan Carlos Pinzón Bueno, the defense minister of Colombia, visited Seoul. He and his ROK counterpart Han Min‐koo signed a bilateral defense coopera on MOU. Photo credit: Pedro Szekely’s photostream.
Looking Ahead Our Friday morning preview of events to watch in the weeks ahead.
March 26| The ROK and Mongolia will hold the first intergovernmental consultative meeting in 25 years in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia.
March 26–28| Chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Martin E. Dempsey will be in South Korea to discuss the U.S.-ROK alliance.
March 28–April 1| U.S.-ROK joint landing drill Ssangyong will take place in Pohang as part of the ongoing Foal Eagle military exercise.
Mid-April| The Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialouge (KIDD) will take place in Washington, D.C.
KOREA CHAIR MONITOR CSIS Office of the Korea Chair contributors: Victor Cha, Senior Adviser and Chair Ellen Kim, Assistant Director and Fellow Marie DuMond, Research Associate Andy Lim, Senior Research Intern Na Young Lee, KF‐CSIS Junior Researcher Heeyoun Baek, Research Intern Mia Gregory, Research Intern Junhee Kang, Research Intern Sophia Zhang, Research Intern For more details on our programs and real‐ me updates from CSIS, follow the CSIS Office of the Korea Chair on: Facebook at h p://www.facebook.com/csiskoreachair Twi er at @CSISKoreaChair Our website at h p://csis.org/program/korea‐chair iTunesU using your iPad or iPhone at h p://itunes.com/csis.
KoreaChair Monitor is a biweekly publica on of the CSIS Office of the Korea Chair, available online. CSIS is a private, nonprofit ins tu on headquartered in Washington, D.C., focusing on inter‐ na onal public policy issues. Its research is nonpar san and nonproprietary. CSIS does not take specific policy posi ons; accordingly, all views expressed in this publica on should be understood to be solely those of the author(s). © 2015 by the Center for Strategic and Interna onal Studies. All rights reserved.
