ROK-CANADA FOREIGN AND DEFENCE (2+2) MINISTERIAL MEETING JOINT STATEMENT

We, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Ministers of National Defence of the Republic of Korea (ROK) and Canada met on November 1, 2024, in Ottawa, Canada, for the inaugural ROK-Canada Foreign and Defence (2+2) Ministerial Meeting (“the Ministerial”). The Ministerial builds upon the elevation of our diplomatic relationship to that of a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) and is a key deliverable of the CSP Action Plan launched in July 2024.

Today, through several new announcements and initiatives, we demonstrate our resolve to deepen cooperation to reinforce global stability in the face of interconnected challenges in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. In this, the ROK and Canada are stronger together.

PARTNERS FOR GLOBAL STABILITY

We condemn in the strongest possible terms North Korea’s deepening military cooperation with Russia in violation of multiple United Nations Security Council (UNSC) resolutions, including the provision of millions of rounds of ammunition and ballistic missiles to support Russia’s brutal and unjustifiable war of aggression in Ukraine. We are gravely concerned that large numbers of North Korean soldiers have been deployed to Russia, which is a significant escalation with dangerous implications for security and stability in Europe and the Indo-Pacific region. We are closely monitoring what Russia provides North Korea in return for weapons and military personnel, including Russia’s possible provision of sensitive technology to advance North Korea’s weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missile programs. We call on North Korea and Russia to immediately cease these unlawful and destabilizing activities and to withdraw North Korean troops from Russia. Recognizing that the security of the Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic regions are increasingly interconnected, we commit to actively pursuing further measures together with the international community.  

We call on Russia to withdraw its forces immediately, completely, and unconditionally from all Ukrainian territory to its internationally recognized borders; we reiterate our unwavering support for Ukraine and the Ukrainian people, and we remain steadfast in our commitment to protect and defend Ukraine’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.  

We express our deep concern with any nation’s efforts to support Russia’s war economy, such as through the transfer of dual-use materials, including weapons components and equipment, which enable Russia to prolong and sustain its illegal war in Ukraine.

We condemn North Korea’s nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missile programs, and continued missile launches, including its intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test on October 31 (local time), which threatens peace and stability in the region and across the globe, are in violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions (UNSCRs) and international law. It only demonstrates that North Korea continues to prioritize its unlawful WMD and ballistic missile programs over the well-being of its people, and we call on North Korea to cease its destabilizing actions. We reaffirm that any further nuclear test by North Korea would be met with a strong and resolute response from the international community. We continue to call for the complete, verifiable, and irreversible dismantlement of North Korea’s WMDs. The ROK reiterated the goals of its Audacious Initiative and ‘August 15 Unification Doctrine’ and Canada expressed strong support for the ROK’s efforts to achieve a denuclearized, free, peaceful, prosperous, and unified Korean Peninsula.

Both countries remain committed to multilateral sanctions evasion monitoring efforts and Canada will continue to provide assets via the Canadian Armed Forces’ Operation NEON.  

We were pleased to join other participating countries last month in launching the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT). We reaffirm the goal of assisting all UN Member States in implementing UN sanctions on North Korea by publishing information on sanctions violations and evasion attempts.

We highlight the valuable contributions of the United Nations Command (UNC) to peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. The ROK commends Canada for its unwavering support of the UNC since its inception, and Canada’s current leadership role within the UNC through its provision of its Deputy Commander. The co-hosting of the UNC Ministerial together this year is a symbol of our powerful ties and shared priorities in the areas of security and defence, and we will continue to collaborate closely to strengthen cooperation among the ROK, UNC and its Member States.

The ROK and Canada are committed to working together to actively promote and protect human rights in the Indo-Pacific and around the world, including within North Korea and to seeking accountability for human rights violations.

We reiterate that the situation of human rights in North Korea is intrinsically linked to international peace and security, and we call on North Korea to engage fully and constructively with the international community, including during its upcoming Universal Periodic Review at the Human Rights Council. We also look forward to the next iteration of the ROK-Canada North Korean Human Rights Dialogue.

The ROK and Canada affirm our commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, based on the rule of law and the peaceful resolution of disputes. We continue to advocate for peace and stability throughout the Indo-Pacific region.  We oppose any unilateral attempts to change the status quo in the Indo-Pacific. We reaffirm that maintaining peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait is indispensable to international security and prosperity.

The ROK and Canada express their support for the global maritime order based on international law, including the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). We express concern about developments in the South China Sea, and emphasise the importance of maintaining peace, security, stability and freedom of navigation and overflight in and above the South China Sea, consistent with UNCLOS.

Canada appreciates the ROK’s participation in the Conference on the Human Dimension of Ukraine’s 10-Point Peace Formula, hosted by Canada, Ukraine and Norway in Montreal on October 31st, demonstrating our joint resolve to end Russia’s war in Ukraine. The ROK and Canada will continue to discuss ways to jointly support Ukraine’s Peace Formula, while providing the support Ukraine requires to secure a just and lasting peace.

INDO-PACIFIC PARTNERS

The ROK and Canada acknowledge the Indo-Pacific region’s pivotal role in shaping global geopolitical and economic relations in the 21st century, with long-term implications for our shared prosperity and security. The ROK and Canada share a common vision for the region to be more secure, free, peaceful, prosperous, inclusive, and sustainable.

In this context, we congratulate the organizers of the successful Korea-Canada Forum held on October 24-26, 2024 in Montreal, and the Korean Peninsula Symposium on October 23, 2024, co-organized with the Embassies of Japan, and the United States.

To deepen and implement bilateral collaboration in the region, we announce today the launch of the Korea-Canada Indo-Pacific Dialogue, where our respective Special Envoys for the Indo-Pacific will engage on identifying synergies and joining action on shared regional priorities.

We also look forward to the Indo-Pacific High-Level Forum, co-hosted by the ROK and Australia, in Seoul on December 13, as we recognize the importance of cooperation with the broader community of Indo-Pacific partners.

In 2025, we look forward to Canada’s G7 Presidency and the ROK’s hosting of APEC. We further elaborated today how our two countries will establish synergies and use our leadership for cooperation on regional and global challenges. Canada looks forward to working with the ROK on advancing G7 priorities as relevant, including building economies that benefit everyone, fighting climate change, and managing rapidly evolving technologies. Furthermore, the ROK and Canada look forward to working together for a productive APEC in 2025.

As actively engaged global partners, we will deepen our collective engagement with ASEAN, leveraging the ROK-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and the Canada-ASEAN Strategic Partnership, while reaffirming our commitment to the principle of ASEAN Centrality.

PARTNERS IN SECURITY AND DEFENCE  

The ROK and Canada are committed to deepening partnerships in security and advancing shared defence priorities through bilateral and multilateral initiatives.  The ROK and Canada will strengthen bilateral and multilateral exercises, including holding regular Army Staff Talks, with the inaugural edition to be hosted in Canada.  

We are committed to jointly delivering and collaborating on Women, Peace and Security, so that women have full, meaningful and equal participation in defence & security, peace operations and peace negotiations. As we seek to enhance women’s participation in conflict prevention, conflict resolution, and post-conflict state building, The ROK and Canada will leverage the ROK’s 2024-2025 UNSC seat to jointly advance the Women, Peace, and Security agenda globally as well as in the Indo-Pacific region.

We will continue to cooperate on maritime safety, and combat illegal, unreported, and unregulated fishing, including through detecting dark vessels and joint patrols under Operation North Pacific Guard. We will also continue to explore ways of addressing maritime security challenges in the Indo-Pacific through enhanced maritime domain awareness and relevant instruments such as the Regional Cooperation Agreement Combatting Piracy and Armed Robbery against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP).

We will further utilize the Korea-Canada Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Materiel Cooperation to share technical information, discuss defence equipment and technology issues of mutual interest, and identify opportunities for bilateral defence materiel cooperation, and hold the 3rd Joint Meeting (Materiel) in Canada in 2025.

We agree to expand our work within the Korea-Canada Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Research and Development, to encourage collaboration between respective defence research and development organizations.

Canada welcomes the contribution of the ROK as a NATO partner and commits to working with the ROK to advance its Individually Tailored Partnership Programme. Canada further welcomes the ROK’s recent participation at the NATO Defence Ministers’ Meeting in Brussels.  

ADDRESSING NON-TRADITIONAL SECURITY CHALLENGES

We recognize that climate change is the defining challenge of our time and a threat multiplier that impacts our collective security, including within the Indo-Pacific and Euro-Atlantic areas, and we affirm our strong support for NATO’s Climate Change and Security Agenda.  

We acknowledge that our democratic values, institutions and processes, and our citizens’ fundamental freedoms, are increasingly vulnerable to hybrid and digital threats, such as foreign interference and disinformation, and we will continue to expand our cooperative efforts to combat these threats.

We are committed to addressing threats and seizing opportunities linked to cybersecurity and emerging technologies, including threats to the rule of law, democracy, and critical infrastructure. We are pleased to announce today that we will hold Korea-Canada Cyber Policy Consultations to exchange information on each other’s policies, strategies and capabilities. Canada is also pleased to note the ROK’s fruitful engagement with the NATO Cooperative Cyber Defence Centre of Excellence in Tallin, Estonia, of which Canada is also a member.

We recognize the importance of the responsible use of artificial intelligence, including in the military domain. Canada commends the ROK for hosting several high-level international gatherings on AI to advance discussions on global AI governance, including the AI Seoul Summit in May 2024, and the Responsible Artificial Intelligence in the Military domain (REAIM) Summit in September 2024, in Seoul. We strongly support the Seoul Declaration for safe, innovative, and inclusive AI and the principles for the responsible development, deployment, and use of AI in the military domain articulated in the REAIM Blueprint for Action.

The relationship between our two nations dates back centuries; reinforced by our countries’ collective efforts to defend peace and security on the Korean Peninsula since the Korean War. We commit to meeting in this format on a biennial basis and look forward to the next iteration of this Ministerial in 2026, where we will reflect on and examine how we may further build upon the achievements stemming from today’s discussion.

Annex – Announcements

Today, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defence of the Republic of Korea and Canada announced that our countries have agreed to:

·Hold this Ministerial on a biennial basis and look forward to its next iteration in 2026 to follow-up on the achievements of today’s discussion.

·Launch the Korea-Canada Indo-Pacific Dialogue, where our respective Special Envoys for the Indo-Pacific will engage on identifying synergies and joint action on shared regional priorities, including in the North Pacific.

·Advance bilateral diplomatic intelligence cooperation and analytic exchanges between our respective foreign ministries.

·Expedite the negotiations to finalize the Agreement on the Protection of Classified Military/Defence Information.  

·Explore measures to facilitate and deepen military operational cooperation.

·Strengthen bilateral and multilateral exercises, including holding regular Army Staff Talks, with the inaugural edition to be hosted in Canada.

·Hold the 3rd Joint Meeting (Materiel), hosted by Canada in 2025 under the Korea-Canada Memorandum of Understanding on Defence Materiel Cooperation, and continue to identify and expand opportunities for defence cooperation.  

·Hold Korea-Canada bilateral Cyber Policy Consultations.