Korea wins second term on ISO board, keeping seat through 2029

South Korea has been re-elected to the governing board of the International Organization for Standardization, extending the country's seat at the body that sets global technical standards for another three years.

The country was returned to the ISO Council for the 2027-2029 term at the organization's 2026 general assembly in Paris, held from Sept. 27 to Oct. 1, the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards said. Korea currently sits on the council for the 2024-2026 term and will keep participating in decisions on ISO strategy, budget and major standardization policy.

The re-election followed a contested vote, with Korea prevailing over India and Austria for one of the available seats.

Seoul registered its candidacy in May and campaigned in coordination with the foreign ministry, drawing on the Pacific Area Standards Congress, a bilateral standards meeting with the United States and talks on the sidelines of the assembly with France, Mongolia, Zimbabwe, Britain, Saudi Arabia, Haiti, Australia and Sweden.

The ISO Council has 20 member seats and is scheduled to expand to 21 countries from 2027. Six countries hold permanent seats - Germany, the United States, China, Japan, Britain and France - and the remaining members are chosen by a vote of full member states at the general assembly.

With the new term, the agency plans to lead in setting international standards for advanced industries including artificial intelligence and quantum technology, and to keep exerting influence over ISO policy discussions such as the digital transformation of the pre-development stage of standards. It also intends to strengthen standards cooperation with the United States, Britain, France and other major countries so that Korean technology and the views of domestic industry are reflected in international standards without delay, and to take part in official ISO programs aimed at widening developing countries' participation in standardization.

"The re-election has laid the foundation for further expanding Korea's influence at the International Organization for Standardization," said Kim Dae-ja, head of the Korean Agency for Technology and Standards.

"We will work to lead the standardization of future core technologies such as AI and quantum, so that it feeds into strengthening the global competitiveness of our companies," Kim said.