Foreign ministry releases once-confidential diplomatic documents

The foreign ministry said Sunday that it has released a total of 1,490 volumes of diplomatic documents, or about 220,000 pages, after more than 30 years of being classified.

The diplomatic dossiers released this year include those on a 1982 proposal by former president Chun Doo-hwan for reunification with North Korea and South Korea's review of a proposal to take part in a multi-national force in Lebanon, the ministry said in a statement.

The documents are available for viewing and printing at the ministry's library and the list is available at the ministry's website.

Since 1994, the ministry has annually made public diplomatic documents to enhance the public's right to know and increase transparency of administrative affairs, it said. (Yonhap News)