South Korea to hold meeting on Syrian economic reconstruction

South Korea will hold an international meeting next month to help the unrest-torn Syria rebuild its economy, local media reported. South Korean foreign ministry on Monday said the third meeting of the Economic Recovery Working Group for Syria will be hosted in Seoul on Dec. 12. "The co-chairman countries -- the United Arab Emirates and Germany -- agreed on the date ... given the smooth processes having been taken so far to resolve Syria's chemical weapon issues, " the Yonhap news agency quoted the official as saying. The meeting is scheduled to bring together government officials from 60 nations and international organization staff to discuss ways of helping the Syrian people, who have suffered from the 31- month conflict, in terms of economic recovery, food security, securing drinking water sources and energy, the official said. Seoul's original plan of hosting this meeting in mid-September was forced to postpone concerning the United States' imminent strike on Syrian for an alleged chemical weapons attack on Aug. 21 by the Syrian government. The Economic Recovery Working Group for Syria is a part of diplomatic activities led by the Friends of Syria, a group of around 70 nations that support the opposition group members in Syria.