The 9th Korea-SICA (Central American Integration System) Meeting on Dialogue and Cooperation was held in Panama City, Panama, on April 20.

The Korea-SICA Meeting on Dialogue and Cooperation is a regularly-convened high-level consultative body between Korea and eight Central American countries, – namely, El Salvador, Honduras, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Panama, Costa Rica, Belize, and the Dominican Republic – established in September 1996 to promote substantive cooperation between the two regions.

1st Vice Minister Shin Kak-soo attended the meeting as Korea’s top delegate, while on the SICA side, vice foreign ministers or other ranking officials of SICA’s eight member states led their respective delegations.

The Meeting discussed the integration of Central America and Asia; the current situation on the Korean peninsula; and cooperation in economy, trade, investment, energy, resources, infrastructure and development. After the Meeting, Vice Minister Shin and the top delegates of the eight other countries signed a joint statement.

On the sidelines of the 9th Korea-SICA Meeting, Vice Minister Shin had bilateral meetings with the delegates of seven countries (except for Guatemala) to discuss issues of mutual interest.

In the wake of the Meeting, Vice Minister Shin is scheduled to visit Ecuador and Peru to discuss cooperation in energy, resources and infrastructure, and other key pending issues.