Published : Aug. 12, 2012 - 20:17
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon arrived in South Korea Saturday for a four-day visit to attend an international maritime conference and the closing ceremony for the World Expo in Yeosu, Seoul officials said.
Ban gave a keynote speech at a global conference on Sunday that marks the 30th anniversary of the U.N. Convention on the Law of the Sea.
Co-organized by the South Korean government and the U.N., the one-day conference in the southern coastal city of Yeosu brought together high-ranking officials in global maritime affairs, including Koji Sekimizu, the secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization, and Patricia O’Brien, the U.N. undersecretary-general for legal affairs and counsel.
In Yeosu, Ban joined the closing ceremony for the Expo, which wrapped up its 93-day run.
U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and his wife Yoo Soon-taek wave at the Yeosu Expo on its final day on Sunday. (Yonhap News)
On Monday, Ban will attend a ceremony in Seoul to launch the Development Alliance Korea, a coalition of local civic groups to promote overseas development aid, and the opening ceremony of the Seoul National University Global Medical Center.
In South Korea, Ban will also meet with Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik and National Assembly Speaker Kang Chang-hee.
Ban’s visit to South Korea is “expected to serve as a good opportunity to create public consensus on the need to strengthen Korea’s role in the international community,” Seoul’s foreign ministry said in a statement.
(Yonhap News)