Ukrainian minister vows support for ethnic Koreans

SEOUL, May 7 (Yonhap) -- A visiting Ukrainian interior minister pledged to
closely cooperate with South Korea on a campaign to help ethnic Koreans in the
Central Asian nation, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.
Ukraine's Interior Minister Yuriy Lutsenko made the commitment during his meeting
with Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan on Wednesday night, it added. Lutsenko is on
a five-day trip here from Tuesday.
Around 550,000 ethnic Koreans currently live in former Soviet Union states,
according to government data. More than 13,000 of them reside in Ukraine.
The community is a legacy of a mass immigration of Koreans to the Soviet region
amid the decline of Korea's Joseon Dynasty in the 19th century. Many moved to
Siberia, which they believed was a prosperous land.
"In the meeting, Minister Yu explained about the South Korean government's
efforts to provide those ethnic Koreans with more material support from a
historical, moral, and humanitarian perspective," the ministry said. "He also
expressed gratitude to the Ukrainian interior ministry for helping the ethnic
Koreans maintain a stable life there."
In response, the Ukrainian minister vowed continued interest and support for the
issue, it added.
lcd@yna.co.kr
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