Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul (right) on March 18, 2023, takes a photo with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at a luncheon conference hosted by the ministry in Seoul's Jongno-gu District. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

By Gil Kyuyoung

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has pledged its best efforts to maintain stable foreign relations amid uncertainty at home and abroad.

The ministry on Jan. 16 said this in presenting its main promotion tasks for 2025 at a meeting on resolving major diplomatic and security issues.

The first order of business is to pursue high-level exchanges with the second Trump administration of the U.S. for stable development of the bilateral alliance.

Another task is to continue cooperation through the bilateral Nuclear Consultative Group and boost security cooperation with the U.S.

For ties with Japan, Korea will also continue its momentum in bilateral cooperation. Seoul will proceed with joint projects to smoothly mark the 60th anniversary of the normalization of relations and manage sensitive issues in a stable manner such as conflict over the history between both nations.

The ministry also pledged to maintain a strategic cooperative partnership with China. Dialogue will continue on Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Korea for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit slated for October in Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province.

Other tasks are close exchanges with NATO and the group Indo-Pacific Four comprising Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand and stronger cooperation with the Group of Seven economies.

The ministry will also promote a successful hosting of the inaugural Korea-Central Asian Summit this year and keep up development of its comprehensive strategic partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations.

"Over the past 2 1/2 years, we have strived to implement our vision of becoming a global pivotal state," it said. "We plan to maintain a stable tone in our foreign policy and carry out key initiatives."

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