Assembly completes leadership of friendship associations

SEOUL, Nov. 9 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's National Assembly said Sunday it has
completed naming it leadership who will co-head parliamentary friendship
committees to be formed with 88 countries, including the U.S. Britain and China.
South Korea often use such parliamentary committees to boost exchanges and
promote friendship with other countries. Such committees are co-chaired with
lawmakers from both sides.
According to National Assembly officials, ruling Grand National Party lawmakers
will co-chair such friendship committees with 50 countries, including Germany,
Canada, Australia, India, Taiwan, Egypt, Israel, Kuwait, South Africa, Argentina,
Switzerland, the Netherlands, Spain and Uzbekistan, among others.
Legislators from the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) will co-head such
friendship associations with 25 countries, including France, Italy, Brazil,
Mexico, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Iran, Mongolia, Sweden and Kazakhstan, they
said.
The chairperson's posts for the nation's friendship associations with the
Philippines, Senegal, Costa Rica, Slovenia, Georgia, Serbia and Kyrigistan went
to several minor opposition parties, the officials said.
Chung Mong-joon, a six-term lawmaker of the GNP, has been picked to co-head the
South Korea-U.S. parliamentary friendship association, while five-term GNP
lawmaker Kim Moo-sung will head the South Korea-China parliamentary friendship
association, they said.
Senior DP lawmakers Chun Jung-bae and Kang Bong-kyun will serve as chairmen of
the nation's parliamentary friendship associations with Russia and the European
Union, respectively, said the officials.
Meanwhile, Lee Sang-deuk, elder brother of President Lee Myung-bak, was named the
chairman of a South Korea-Japan parliamentary friendship association in a meeting
held in Seoul on Friday.
ycm@yna.co.kr
(END)