Deputy Minister for International Affairs Choi Ji-young attended the 10th Annual Meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB)*, held in Beijing, China, from June 24 to June 26.
* Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB): An international financial institution launched in January 2016 to promote economic development and regional cooperation in Asia through infrastructure investment.
< Outcome of participation in the AIIB Annual Meeting >
The 10th AIIB Annual Meeting, held under the theme “Connecting for Development, Collaborating for Prosperity”, was attended by delegations from over 90 of the Bank’s 110 member countries, as well as representatives from international financial institutions, infrastructure-related companies, financial institutions, and academia.
At the AIIB Governors’ Special Session held on June 24 (Tue), members unanimously elected Zou Jiayi as the next President of the AIIB. At the Governors’ Official Session on June 26 (Thu), they approved the AIIB’s 2024 Annual Report and the designation of Qatar as the host country for the next Annual Meeting.
In particular, Deputy Minister Choi participated in the Governors’ Business Roundtable session held on June 25 (Wed), where he presented the core policy directions of the new Korean administration to member countries and proposed three strategic directions for the AIIB’s future development in alignment with those policies.
First, emphasizing the need to restore ‘global solidarity’, he explained that the new Korean administration will expand its role as a responsible member of the international community through measures such as increasing official development assistance (ODA). He also called on the AIIB to significantly scale up its support for low-income member economies in order to contribute more effectively to their sustainable growth.
Second, he underlined the significance of growth by leveraging artificial intelligence (AI). He explained that Korea aims to foster future growth engine by accelerating the AI transition, including the development of AI data centers and the expansion of public data access. In this context, he urged the AIIB to play a greater role in securing new growth drivers for Asia by increasing investment in AI-related infrastructure across the region.
Last but not least, he highlighted the imperative of addressing the climate crisis, noting that the new Korean administration is committed to proactively combating climate change through the expansion of renewable energy sources. He also called on the AIIB to enhance support for low-income countries vulnerable to climate risks and to assume a leading role in shaping Asia’s collective response to the climate crisis.
< Outcome of bilateral meetings >
During the business trip, the Ministry of Economy and Finance held bilateral meetings with the Vice Minister of Finance of China and the Director of the ASEAN+3 Macroeconomic Research Office (AMRO).
Above all, in the meeting with Vice Minister of Finance of China Liao Min, Deputy Minister Choi provided an overview of the new Korean administration’s policies and shared responses to the growing global uncertainties, including trade barriers. He further emphasized that Korea will continue to pursue stronger economic cooperation with China in the years ahead.
Next, in the meeting with Director of the AMRO Yasuto Watanabe, congratulations were extended on his appointment at the end of May. At the same time, it was proposed that Korea and AMRO continue to strengthen their collaboration moving forward.
Going forward, the Korean government intends to proactively deepen its collaboration with the AIIB and continue making efforts to foster prosperity and sustainable growth throughout the Asian region.
Please refer to the attached files.
