강경화 "안보는 한미동맹•경제는 개방과 포용"…미중갈등 원칙<br /><br />With U.S., China relations at a new low, South Korea has stressed the need to be prepared for a range of scenarios involving its main ally and its biggest trading partner.<br />A meeting was held at Seoul's foreign ministry on Tuesday to address the concerns regarding the souring relations as well as the global impact of COVID-19.<br />Our Kim Do-yeon reports.<br />"Even minor friction could lead to major clashes... the key is to hold our balance" that's what South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said about the current diplomatic situations around the world.<br />Amid lingering tensions between the U.S. and China Seoul's foreign ministry on Tuesday hosted the third Strategic Coordination Meeting on Foreign Affairs.<br />"Multilateral cooperation frameworks are not functioning properly, while the roles of international organizations are being isolated, global supply networks and private exchanges are contracting."<br />Even with souring Sino-U.S. relations, Seoul hopes to maintain good relations with both Washington, its security ally, and Beijing, a major trading partner.<br />The foreign ministry also outlined its four major principles...<br />For national security, there was emphasis on the importance of the U.S. ROK alliances.<br />For economy and trade, the ministry supported fair and reciprocal trade relations while being open and inclusive.<br />Continued support is to be given for science and technology through strategic openness... but with the need to strengthen security for the country's own technologies.<br />Lastly, in terms of values and standards, there is a eagerness to contribute to the practical enhancement of the values that humanity jointly pursues.<br />There were around 50 people in attendance at the meeting from 10 government departments...such as the Ministries of Defense and Unification and also from academic institutions.<br />The first Strategic Coordination Meeting was held in July 2019 in response to certain fast-changing diplomatic relations such as Tokyo's export curbs on Seoul.<br />Kim Do-yeon, Arirang News<br />
