On 9 September 2020, H.E. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Thailand, participated in the ASEAN - Republic of Korea (ROK) Ministerial Meeting via video conference. H.E. Mrs. Kang Kyung-wha, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea participated in the Meeting.

The Meeting stressed the importance of cooperation in mitigating the impact of COVID-19 and appreciated the ROK’s contribution of 5 million USD to ASEAN in ‘Enhancing the Detection Capacity for COVID-19 in ASEAN Member States’ projects to procure medical supplies and equipment, and allocation of 1 million USD to the COVID-19 ASEAN Response Fund. The Meeting agreed to enhance cooperation in regional economic recovery with the focus on ROK’s New Southern Policy, the use of technology and innovation to improve health sector capacities, maintaining the regional supply chain, promoting connectivity, as well as innovation and digital economy for MSMEs and start-ups.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs stated that people must be at the heart of the ASEAN and ROK partnership and emphasised (1) capacity-building in disease prevention and control, prevention of future outbreaks of other diseases, and creation of health dialogues between ASEAN and ROK (2) cooperation on technology and innovation in the business sector especially in the smart infrastructure, smart cities, and green growth and (3) promotion of peace and stability in the Korean Peninsula.

The Meeting also exchanged views on developments in the Korean Peninsula and the South China Sea, whereby the Ministers stressed the importance of continued dialogues amongst the concerned parties.