A Foreign Ministers' Meeting of the ISAF (International Security Assistance Force) Contributing Nations was held in Berlin on April 14with high-level officials from 48 ISAF Contributing Nations, including the Foreign Ministers of the US, the UK, France and Germany, as well as the NATO Secretary-General, the UN Special Representative and representatives of other international organizations. * MOFAT's Deputy Minister Kim Jae-shin took part in the Meeting as head of the Korean delegation.
The participating countries shared the view that, for the security responsibility to be transferred successfully to the Afghan military and police from ISAF this coming July, it is imperative to strengthen the capabilities of the Afghan military and police and to lay the groundwork for sustainable economic and social development. They agreed to make strong efforts to this end.
Deputy Minister Kim expressed the strong willingness of the Korean government to join international efforts in this regard. He announced the government's plan to provide US$500 million over the next five years as part of its contribution to strengthening the capabilities of the Afghan military and police and achieving economic and social development.
The Korean government has taken part in international efforts to support the reconstruction of Afghanistan by providing grant aid (worth some US$180 million) through KOICA (Korea International Cooperation Agency), and setting up an independent provincial reconstruction team (which started operation in July 2010). The additional assistance is expected to contribute to peace-building and reconstruction of Afghanistan, and further enhancing Korea's international standing, which was raised by hosting the G20 Summit last year.
Source: MOFAT
