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`October 9, 1974 marks the centennial of the Universal Postal Union(UPU). Now a specialized agency of the United Nations, the UPU was founded on October 9, 1874 when delegates from 21 countries signed an international agreement on postal services following their meeting in Bern, Switzerland, on September 15 of the same year. The purpose of the UPU, which has established universal postal services covering the whole world, is to guarantee free exchange of mails among the nations and promote international cooperation in all aspects of postal activities. The UPU today is made up of 153 member countries, including the Republic of Korea which was formally admitted into the world postal organization on January 1, 1900 after it participated in the fifth UPU Congress held in Washington and signed the universal postal treaty in 1897. The Ministry of Communications, paying a high tribute to the UPU for its tremendous achievements, is issuing these commemorative stamps in order to give this auspicious occasion a wide publicity at home and abroad.`