S. Korea hosts virtual meeting of Asia-Pacific parliamentarians

SEOUL, Dec. 13 (Yonhap) -- A Seoul-hosted virtual conference of Asia-Pacific parliamentarians opened Monday to discuss inclusion and solidarity amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The 29th annual meeting of the Asia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF) kicked off for a three-day run under the theme of "The role of parliaments in strengthening resilience in the post-COVID-19 era," according to South Korea's National Assembly.

The forum has 27 member states, including South Korea, China, Japan, Russia, Vietnam and the United States. This year's meeting also includes Brunei Darussalam as an observer country.

An inaugural ceremony will be held Tuesday, with opening remarks from National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seug, who is chairing the meeting, and a prerecorded video message from President Moon Jae-in.

The only event Monday was a meeting of women parliamentarians.

On Wednesday, member states are scheduled to adopt a joint communique and 13 resolutions, including a document titled "Peace on the Korean Peninsula," which recognizes Seoul's efforts to declare a formal end to the 1950-53 Korean War and arrange an inter-Korean parliamentary conference.

This is the second time South Korea has hosted the meeting in 23 years.

hague@yna.co.kr
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