FM Cho asks Cambodia to help ensure protection of Koreans amid job scam concern

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, right, poses with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn during their talks on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly in New York, Sept. 24. Courtesy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun has asked his Cambodian counterpart to pay attention to the growing risk of job scams targeting South Koreans in the Southeast Asian nation and to help ensure their safety, Seoul's foreign ministry said Thursday.

Cho made the request during his talks with Cambodian Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Prak Sokhonn on the margins of the U.N. General Assembly in New York on Wednesday (local time), voicing concerns over the organized crime operations that have alerted countries around the world.

Reports have said that many young foreigners visiting Cambodia have fallen victim to online job scams run by human traffickers, who lure them into illegal cyber fraud schemes and hold them captive to carry out the operations.

Cho expressed "serious concerns over the job scams targeting Korean nationals and the harm caused by their captivity," and called for Cambodia's "active cooperation to ensure the protection of Korean citizens," the ministry said.

Prak Sokhonn vowed close cooperation, saying that his country values exchanges between the peoples of the two countries.

On bilateral relations, Prak Sokhonn voiced hope for expanding economic partnership with Korea, including trade and investment.

Cho also asked for Cambodia's continued support for Korea's peace initiative for the Korean Peninsula.