The Korea Herald

피터빈트

Asia-Pacific news agency chiefs open Seoul session on challenges facing media

By Yonhap

Published : Nov. 7, 2019 - 09:17

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President Moon Jae-in will meet with chiefs of news agencies in the Asia-Pacific region Thursday afternoon, Cheong Wa Dae said, as he's expected to seek continued attention and support for the Korea peace process and the upcoming special summit with Southeast Asian nations.

Moon will sit down with representatives of 32 news agencies from 28 countries, including Yonhap News Agency CEO Cho Sung-boo and delegates from China's Xinhua News Agency, Japan's Kyodo News and Russia's TASS news agency, at his office.

The delegates are in Seoul to attend the 17th Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies General Assembly that began earlier in the day.


(Yonhap) (Yonhap)

It will be Moon's first official schedule at home since last week's funeral of his mother.

Moon plans to make his opening remarks, followed by comments by OANA President Aslan Aslanov and Yonhap CEO Cho, according to Cheong Wa Dae.

The meeting will be also joined by Yoon Do-han, senior Cheong Wa Dae secretary for public communication, and Joo Hyung-chul, a presidential adviser for economic affairs.

Moon will explain the government's efforts for lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula and ask for the news agencies' support for his initiative, according to a Cheong Wa Dae official.

"To build peace and prosperity in Northeast Asia beyond the peninsula, solid support by the international community is necessary. Moon is likely to ask the news agencies to play a role in that process," the official said.

Moon will also likely request them to pay attention to the ASEAN-South Korea commemorative summit and a separate Mekong-South Korea session set for Nov. 25-27 in the southeastern port city of Busan.

The three-day session will be the biggest diplomatic event to be held in the country since Moon's inauguration in May 2017.

OANA, which was formed in 1961 on the initiative of UNESCO to promote regional news exchanges, holds its general assembly every three years.

Yonhap will be formally elected as the new chair of OANA at the Seoul assembly and lead the organization for the next three years. (Yonhap)