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`The year 1999 marks the 125th anniversary of the founding of the Universal Postal Union(UPU). The UPU was founded in 1874 and has since become a specialized agency of the United Nations. Currently with 189 mimber countries, the UPU works to form a single global postal territory for the reciprocal exchange of letter-post items, to guarantes freedom of transit throughout the entire territory of the Union, to provide technical assistance as requested by member countries, to promote the development of new postal products and services, as well as to contribute to international cooperation in cultural and social fields. In the early days of modern postal services, payment for mail was collected on delivery. The first world postal agreement was concluded among a few European countries on a bilateral basis for postal exchanges in the 17th century. The rapid development of international trade and commerce, however, rendered the existing bilateral postal exchange treaty useless, prompting a postal reform effort for orderly and uniform global postal services. As a result, theGeneral Postal Unionwascreated in Bern, Switzerland on October 9, 1874, with 22 countries singing the treat which was drafted by Heinrich von Stepha of Germany. The nameGeneral Postal Unionwas replaced by the Paris in 1878. In commemoration of the 125th anniversary of the UPU and to honor its aim of promoting the quality of worldwide postal service, this stamp is being issued, featuringlove-delivering maildesigned by Chang Hyun-ju. The design won the World Design Contest held in 1998. `