(LEAD) S. Korea holds first in-person meeting since 2018 of top envoys abroad

Diplomacy 14:17 March 27, 2023

(ATTN: ADDS foreign minister's comments at bottom)

SEOUL, March 27 (Yonhap) -- South Korea opened an annual meeting of its top envoys abroad Monday with a focus on ways for the Yoon Suk Yeol administration's "global pivotal state" vision and drive to expand the country's exports.

It marks the first time for them to hold an in-person group meeting in Seoul since late 2018.

A total of 166 ambassadors, consul generals and other heads of diplomatic missions in foreign countries are joining the five-day gathering.

The event took place online in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This week's gathering is the first of its kind under the Yoon administration launched in May last year.

The heads of missions will be briefed on ways to realize the administration's diplomacy vision, its new Indo-Pacific strategy and the nation's economic security, according to the foreign ministry.

Kim Sung-han, Yoon's national security adviser, will also explain the government's policies and efforts for regional peace.

In his opening speech at the meeting, Foreign Minister Park Jin asked the envoys to work more "innovatively and creatively" in order to stay one step ahead of the changing times.

He added Yoon's upcoming state visit to the United States will serve as a "historic milestone" in developing the Seoul-Washington alliance and expected it to become an opportunity to strengthen extended deterrence against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats.