About APEC 2025 KOREA

- The first meeting presided over by Acting President and Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, who also serves as the Minister of Economy and Finance, reviewed the current preparation status and discussed future plans for APEC 2025 KOREA. - - Acting President Choi urged ministries, provincial governments, and businesses to cooperate and coordinate as one team to ensure timely and successful preparation. –   1. The fifth meeting of the Korea APEC 2025 Organizing Committee, chaired by Acting President and Deputy Prime Minister Choi Sang-mok, who also serves as the Minister of Economy and Finance, was held in the Government Complex Seoul at 14:00 on Wednesday, January 22, 2025.   ※ The “Korea APEC 2025 Organizing Committee” was established in accordance with the "Regulations on the Establishment and Operation of the Organizing Committee and Preparatory Office for APEC 2025 (Presidential Decree No. 459, which took effect on August 17, 2023).“   ※ The Committee serves as a major decision-making body, reviewing plans and other key matters pertaining to the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting (AELM) and other related meetings.   2. Today’s meeting, presided over by Acting President Choi Sang-mok for the first time, discussed and reviewed the current preparation status and future plans for the AELM's infrastructure, business events, cultural programs, etc.   3. The Acting President emphasized that the APEC 2025 KOREA provides an important opportunity to witness Korea’s elevated international standing and strengthen the trust and support of the global community, as it is one of the largest multilateral diplomatic events hosted in Korea since the G20 Summit in 2010 and the Nuclear Security Summit in 2012.   4. Acting President Choi further urged the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, other relevant ministries, provincial governments, and businesses to communicate and collaborate closely, ensuring the timely and speedy preparations for the AELM and related meetings in the remaining time while maintaining readiness in the face of any domestic or international challenges.   5. The participants underscored the necessity of seamless preparations for key infrastructure, such as meeting venues and accommodations, as well as the participation of leaders of major economies and prominent global business leaders. The participants also agreed to work in close coordination to ensure the successful hosting of the 2025 APEC KOREA.   6. Meanwhile, Korea took its first step as the host economy by successfully hosting the Informal Senior Officials’ Meeting (ISOM) in Seoul last December. This year, alongside the AELM in Gyeongju, around 200 meetings at various levels and across diverse sectors will be held nationwide. During the APEC Economic Leaders’ Week (AELW), the CEO Summit and the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC) meeting, featuring leading global business leaders, will also take place.   ※ Senior Officials’ Meetings (SOMs) and sectoral ministerial meetings will be held in Gyeongju (from February to March), Busan (in April and August), Jeju (in May), and Incheon (from July to August), leading up to the AELW, during which the Concluding Senior Officials’ Meeting (CSOM), the APEC Ministerial Meeting (AMM), the AELM, and business events will be held.   7. Acting President Choi Sang-mok stressed the significance of business events in facilitating meaningful business networks for domestic companies. He further called for active engagement from the private sector, particularly recognizing the leadership of Chairman Chey Tae-won of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) and Vice Chairman Cho Hyun-sang of HS Hyosung Group in leading the relevant events.   8. Building on the outcome of today’s meeting, the government will carry out meticulous preparations for the AELM, which will be hosted for the first time in 20 years in Korea, to ensure that it becomes a magnificent economic and cultural event, driving regional economic cooperation while highlighting Korea’s outstanding culture on the global stage.

1. Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul (Co-head of the Preparatory Office for APEC 2025), Gyeongsangbuk-do Province Governor Lee Cheol-woo, and Gyeongju City Mayor Joo Nak-young signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) among the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and Gyeongju City for cooperation on preparation for the 2025 APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting (2025 AELM) on January 22, 2025, at the Government Complex Seoul Annex.   2. By signing the MOU, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the provincial and municipal governments hosting the 2025 AELM (Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and Gyeongju City) showed their commitment to reinforce their cooperation framework for the successful preparations for the 2025 AELM. They also agreed to strengthen cooperation on all other relevant matters such as building urban environment and necessary facilities like meeting venues and  accommodations, and establishing and implementing measures regarding media and transportation.   3. Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul emphasized the importance of seamless and efficient cooperation among the central and provincial and municipal governments as a critical factor for the success of the 2025 AELM. On that note, he reaffirmed his commitment as Minister of Foreign Affairs and Co-head of the Preparatory Office to sparing no efforts to contribute for the success of the event.   4. Gyeongsangbuk-do Province Governor Lee Cheol-woo, calling the 2025 APEC the most significant event to take place in his province, assured that relevant organizations have been closely cooperating. He went on to express his confidence that the signing of the MOU would mark a significant milestone toward enhancing collaboration and elevating the overall quality of the AELM.   5. Gyeongju City Mayor Joo Nak-young highlighted the efforts made in preparing essential elements through multiple site inspections by relevant Ministries and stressed that it is now time to develop a detailed and strategic action plan to further refine the specific support measures for each of those elements. Mayor Joo pledged that the city will make sure that all AELM infrastructure is world-class, and will put in its utmost efforts to ensure that the host city seamlessly makes preparations to offer all necessary support.   6. With the preparation plan for the 2025 AELM agreed upon in their MOU, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province and Gyeongju City will continue to communicate and work closely together for the success of the event. To that end, they will devise concrete and substantive plans as well as their implementation measures.

- Discussions held on APEC 2025 theme and priorities from diverse perspectives of academia, businesses and international organizations -   1. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a symposium on the APEC 2025 Korea priorities in Seoul, December 9. This symposium was the opening event of the APEC 2025 Informal Senior Officials’ Meeting (ISOM), the first APEC meeting to come since Korea’s assumption of the APEC 2025 chairmanship. It brought together nearly 180 participants, including senior officials of APEC member economies and representatives of the APEC Secretariat as well as relevant government agencies and organizations of Korea.   2. The symposium featured welcome remarks by Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Insun and CEO of KOLON Corporation Lee Kyuho who serves as a Korean member of the APEC Business Advisory Council (ABAC). In the ensuing session, APEC 2025 SOM Chair Ambassador Yoon Seongmee and CEO of Parastar Entertainment Haley Cha each delivered a keynote speech on the theme of APEC 2025.   * Parastar Entertainment is Korea’s first-ever entertainment agency for talents with disabilities, including athletes, actors and singers, among others.   3. In her welcome remarks, Vice Minister Kang introduced the theme and priorities of APEC 2025 - “Building a Sustainable Tomorrow: Connect, Innovate, Prosper.” She also expressed her expectations for the symposium to cover in depth how to address diverse challenges  including climate change, emerging technologies, and demographic shifts. She went on to emphasize that Korea, as the chair of APEC 2025, will exert all efforts to successfully hold the Economic Leaders’ Meeting and all other APEC meetings and produce meaningful deliverables in 2025.   4. In his welcome remarks, Mr. Lee Kyu Ho mentioned that the theme and priorities of APEC 2025 reflect Korea’s pledge to realize sustainable and inclusive prosperity in the Asia-Pacific region, which is a common objective for all APEC members.   5. SOM Chair Yoon Seongmee commenced her keynote speech with an overview of the APEC 2025 theme and priorities. She also iterated Korea’s commitment to advance towards a sustainable future of the Asia-Pacific region through the realization of the Putrajaya Vision 2040*.   * The Putrajaya Vision 2040, APEC’s long-term vision adopted in its 2020 Economic Leaders’ Meeting, stipulates the direction of APEC cooperation until 2040 through three key drivers - the liberalization of trade and investment, innovative and digital economy, and inclusive and sustainable growth.   6. In her keynote speech, Ms. Haley Cha highlighted how innovative technology can embrace marginalized groups, citing “Big Ocean,” a K-pop trio with hearing disabilities who debuted this year, as an exemplary case of overcoming difficulties with AI technologies.   7. The symposium brought together experts from academia from home and abroad, businesses, and international organizations including the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI), the Green Climate Fund (GCF), the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), the International Labor Organization (ILO), and the United Nations Commission on International Trade Law (UNCITRAL), who discussed the priorities of APEC 2025.   8. Later in the day, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul hosted a welcome dinner for the senior officials from APEC member economies. He took the opportunity to emphasize that Korea is doing its utmost for the success of APEC 2025 to take place in the city of Gyeongju.

- The Preparatory Office for APEC 2025 of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the APEC Preparation and Support Bureau of Gyeongsangbuk-do & Gyeongju co-organized the visit - - Participants visited the APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting (AELM) venues and accommodation facilities - - The direction of next year’s AELM was explained to the diplomatic corps of APEC member economies -   1. On Friday, November 29, 2024, 37 working-level officials from 18 APEC member economies residing in Korea visited Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do, to be briefed on the progress of preparations for the 2025 APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting (AELM).   o The diplomatic corps visited the Gyeongju Hwabaek International Convention Center (HICO), the main venue of the 2025 AELM, and potential accommodations for the heads of delegations, along with cultural heritage sites, including Bulguksa Temple.   2. The Preparatory Office for APEC 2025 of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the APEC Preparation and Support Bureau of Gyeongsangbuk-do & Gyeongju announced their plans to make the APEC 2025 a cultural showcase that highlights the prestige of Korean culture and diverse regional cultures, as well as an economic showcase that promotes Korea’s high-tech industries and success stories on the global stage.   3. The diplomatic corps’ visit to Gyeongju, Gyeongsanbuk-do was jointly prepared by the Preparatory Office for APEC 2025 and the APEC Preparation and Support Bureau of Gyeongsangbuk-do & Gyeongju, with the 2025 Gyeongju APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting Support Special Act passed on November 28, 2024.   o The two organizations co-hosted a workshop on November 28, 2024, the day before the visit, and united their efforts to ensure the success of the 2025 AELM.   4. Kim Ji-joon, Senior Managing Director of the Preparatory Office for APEC 2025, and Kim Sang-chul, Director General of the APEC Preparation and Support Bureau, stated that the passing of the 2025 Gyeongju APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting Support Special Act had laid a solid foundation for the successful hosting of the 2025 AELM. The two organizations also stressed their strong willingness to make the APEC 2025 one of the most outstanding APEC meetings through the active participation of all citizens.