Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong has called for international coordination for the fair distribution of COVID-19 vaccines. 

The South Korean Foreign Ministry said on Thursday that Minister Chung shared South Korea’s experiences of dealing with the pandemic during a meeting of the Group of Seven(G7) countries’ foreign and development ministers in London on Tuesday and Wednesday. 

Chung stressed the urgency of coordination by the international community to guarantee fair access to the vaccine and urged the G7 to take the lead. 

Held ahead of the G7 summit next month, the participants, including  diplomats from South Korea, India, Australia and Brunei, also discussed cooperation on policies regarding the Indo-Pacific. 

Minister Chung explained Seoul’s regional initiative, the New Southern Policy, and emphasized that synergy between the policy and policies from other countries will be effective. 

He also stressed the need to coordinate on the protection of the marine environment in the Indo-Pacific in an apparent reference to Tokyo’s decision to release radioactive water from the Fukushima nuclear plant into the ocean.