By Sohn JiAe
Photos = Cheong Wa Dae

President Moon Jae-in greeted representatives from 13 Pacific island nations, including Nauru, Samoa and Papua New Guinea, to the third Korea-Pacific Islands Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Dec. 5.

Regarding climate change, the representatives all agreed that, “Pacific island nations are raising our voice about the gravity of climate change all around the world. In this sense, it’s very crucial to maintain close cooperation between Korea and the Pacific island region to address this issue.”

President Moon said, "I understand how grave the threat is in the nations," as he vowed to cooperate and offer support to address the issue.

When Tuvaluan Foreign Minister Taukelina Finikaso said that the Pacific island countries are facing problems related to the management of fishery resources due to over fishing in the region, President Moon said, “As we have water on three sides here in Korea, and as we face North Korea over land to the north, our nation, too, is like an island. This means that proper management of maritime and fishery resources is vital to us, too. In this sense, we are open to cooperation on this area with you.”



“Hosting the third-ever Korea-Pacific Islands Foreign Ministers’ Meeting here in Seoul and opening a Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) office in Fiji gives you a sense of how the Korean government puts a great amount of importance onto the Pacific islands,” said Nauruan President Baron Waqa.

“I hope that Korea will continue to work with us on sustainable development and, also, cooperate with us on such areas as fisheries, renewable energy, trade, tourism and man-power development,” he said.

In response, President Moon said, “Our nation has had successful experiences in terms of economic growth. I believe that we can share these experiences with Pacific island nations.”