Second Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Jina (right) on Feb. 24 takes a photo with United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Barham Salih in Geneva, Switzerland. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

By Kim Seon Ah

The government will further expand its international role to respond to the exacerbating global refugee and health crises.

Second Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kim Jina, on a visit to Geneva to attend the annual session of the United Nations (U.N.) Human Rights Council, on Feb. 24 spoke to the heads of international organizations and expressed Korea's continued commitment to help resolve global issues.

In her meeting with U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Bahram Salih, she praised his leadership amid the global refugee crisis and expressed Seoul's commitment to continue its role in responding to the problem.

The U.N. official thanked Korea for its contributions as a major donor and key partner country, adding his expectations for Seoul's active role in solving refugee issues.

Vice Minister Kim later held talks with Chikwe Ihekweazu, assistant director general for health emergencies of the World Health Organization (WHO), and emphasized Korea's commitment to cooperation for raising global health governance.

The WHO official thanked Korea for its continuous support and suggested reinforcing cooperation.

In later meetings, Vice Minister Kim requested the UNHCR and WHO's interest and cooperation in expanding the hiring of Koreans by international organizations to raise working-level contributions. After concluding such talks, she attended a meeting of Korean staff at such bodies based in Geneva to listen to their opinions.

sofiakim218@korea.kr