President Lee Myung-bak received the last round of the government policy briefings for 2009 at Cheong Wa Dae on Dec. 31. The briefings were given jointly by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Ministry of Unification, and the Ministry of National Defense.

The President said that he received policy briefings earlier than usual this year, because he wanted to show strong determination that the government should get out of the global economic doldrums faster than any other country. In the past, the briefings had taken place in the first quarter of a new year, but the briefings had moved up this year as a way to aggressively deal with the expected economic difficulties of next year, he added.

"The briefings from foreign, unification, and defense ministries today are wrapping up all briefings (for 2009). I asked relevant ministries to report together, because I was convinced that cooperation among government offices has been neglected and insufficient," the President said. He added that the new experiment was meant to bring about synergy among the government offices and expressed satisfaction about seemingly successful results.

The Unification Ministry said it will try to engage North Korea in inter-Korean dialogue using various opportunities and reactivate the operation of the Gaeseong industrial park. The ministry also said it will keep tabs on humanitarian issues, such as the repatriation of South Korean prisoners of war still detained in the North and reunion of separated families.

The Foreign Ministry said it will reach a free trade agreement with the EU in early 2009 in efforts to recover from international financial crisis. The ministry will also increase support for Korean companies'' advance into more foreign markets and their participation in social overhead capital projects overseas.

The Defense Ministry said it will not only faithfully carry out its function by building advanced military, but also contribute to the government''s efforts for economic recovery. The ministry said it aims to earn US$1.2 billion next year from exporting state-of-the-art munitions products.

President Lee has received a total of eight rounds of joint briefings since the first session given by the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, the Financial Services Commission, and the Fair Trade Commission on Dec. 18.