South Korea will continue to contribute to global peace and prosperity by joining the international community in efforts to put an end to the COVID-19 pandemic, Foreign Minister Park Jin said at a foreign ministerial meeting, according to the ministry Wednesday.

Park virtually attended the COVID-19 Global Action Plan Foreign Ministerial Meeting, which was jointly hosted by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, Tuesday. Park was in Tokyo on his official first trip there.

The United States launched the COVID-19 Global Action Plan Foreign Ministerial Meeting in February, in a bid to bring global efforts together to put an end to the spread of the coronavirus and strengthen readiness for future pandemic threats.

At the meeting, Park explained of Seoul’s contributions to support equitable access to essential medical supplies including vaccines, treatment and test kits, by donating over $200 million to the COVAX vaccine-sharing program, the ministry said.

The foreign minister also said South Korea will be providing $30 million for the Financial Intermediary Fund, a financial arrangement to leverage resources to prepare for the future.

He also reiterated how South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol has announced Korea’s financial contribution of $300 million for Access to COVID-19 Tools-Accelerator, a multilateral initiative to encourage development and production of medical supplies, and vowed the country will continue to contribute to global prosperity and peace.

Foreign ministers from over 25 countries, the African Union, the World Health Organization and World Bank took part in the ministerial meeting.

By Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)