By Lee Kap-soo The Korean-German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KGCCI, President & CEO Martin Henkelmann) awarded Continental Korea, dob Studio and Nuvilab as innovators of the year at the ‘9th KGCCI Innovation Awards’ on November 9 at the Banyan Tree Club and Spa Hotel in Seoul. Officially supported by the Korean Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) and Ministry of SMEs and Startups (MSS), the KGCCI Innovation Awards, initiated in 2015, are to support companies that create value in the Korean market through innovative products, processes, and technologies, while also promotin
By Lee Jon-young President Yoon Suk-yeol delivered a keynote address to the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly on Sept. 20, calling the international community's attention to the illegality and danger of the military deal between North Korea and Russia and calling for a united response. In addition to expressing his country's willingness to actively contribute to resolving challenges such as global disparities, President Yoon also called for support for the 2030 Busan World Expo (Busan Expo). President Yoon said at the General Debate on the floor of the UN General Assembly in
By Kim Ji-eun The Ministry of Foreign Affairs hosted at the MOFA building in Seoul on November 6. "Beyond Utopia" has won the Audience Award at the Sundance Film Festival, as well as the Woodstock Film Festival Best Documentary and Best Documentary Editing Awards, and was also invited to the Busan International Film Festival. The film is praised for its vivid depiction of the actual process of defection and the pain of forced repatriation to North Korea. Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin stated that just as protecting overseas nationals is a core mission of the Foreign Ministry and overseas
By Lee Kap-soo “Cambodia is one of the best investment destinations due to its open economy, competitive incentives. Our new investment law was also introduced and within eight months of 2023, Cambodia approved 125 investment projects with the investment of some $1.74 billion and creating 153,997 jobs,” said H.E Amb. Chring Botumrangsay of Cambodia to Korea on Nov. 2. Delivering welcoming remarks on the occasion of the 70th Independence Day of Cambodia and the 26th anniversary of Cambodia-ROK diplomatic relations held at Conrad Hotel Seoul, Amb. Chring said, “In terms of trade, Cambodia's expo
By Lee Jon-young President Yoon Suk-yeol hosted a luncheon for U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, who is visiting South Korea, at the presidential office on Nov. 9. "Over the past year and a half, the U.S.-ROK global comprehensive strategic alliance has been firmly established, and Secretary Blinken has played a great role in this process," the president said, welcoming him to the country. "As an ally of the United States, South Korea will work closely with the United States to defend its core values and strengthen the rules-based international order," the president said, noting that the
By Lee Jon-young Daejeon Police Chief Chung Yong-geun recently applied for honorary retirement, raising questions about his future. On October 10, it was confirmed that he applied for retirement with one and a half years left until his retirement age. There are analysts who believe that Commissioner Chung's application for retirement with one and a half years to go is a pavement for him to enter the political arena after retirement, and the possibility of his entering the political arena is increasing. "I plan to return to my hometown and serve the community, but I haven't decided what form it
By Lee Kap-soo Kim Kyong-hae, CEO of Communications Korea, has published a book on public relations (PR) titled, 'Dream and success of a PR Person'. The author, Kim Kyong-hae, is considered a pioneer in the Korean PR industry, combining practice and theory. As the person who elevated 'PR' to an 'industry' in Korea, Kim led the development of the Korean PR industry while serving as the chairman of the Korea PR Association (KPRA) and the chairman of the Korea Public Relations Consultancy Association (KPRCA). He also served as a reporter for The Korea Herald and Korea correspondent for Reuters be
By Kim Ji-eun President Yoon Suk-yeol held a summit with visiting Estonian President Alar Karis and exchanged views on the development of bilateral relations, ways to strengthen practical cooperation, and trends in the international situation on Oct. 12. President Yoon praised the active cooperation between Korea and Estonia, two IT powerhouses, in areas such as cybersecurity and e-government, and expressed his hope that cooperation will expand to various fields such as R&D and defense. President Karis responded that he hopes to expand cooperation, especially in the areas of defense and di
By Kayla Lee A delegation of the Gyeongsangnam-do Provincial Assembly visited the Vientiane Provincial Government Office in Laos and signed a friendship exchange agreement for friendship and mutual cooperation on Nov. 2. The signing took place at the Vientiane Provincial Government Office Building in Vientiane, Laos, where 11 members of the Gyeongnam Provincial Assembly, including Speaker Kim Jin-bu, visited the government building on behalf of the Gyeongnam Provincial Assembly. This event was proposed at a meeting with the Vientiane Provincial Assembly during the Parliamentary Steering Commit
By Lee Kap-soo First Lady Kim Keon-hee met with the Honorable Laura Mattarella, who is on a state visit to South Korea with her father, Italian President Sergio Mattarella, at the Yongsan Presidential Office on Nov. 8. Mrs. Kim discussed a variety of topics with Laura, including culture and art, fashion, design, and cuisine, and expressed her hope that "creative and meaningful cultural events will be organized on the occasion of the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Italy next year." "Korea and Italy have a lot in common culturally and emotionally," Kim said, adding t
By Lee Jon-young President Yoon Suk-yeol held a summit with Italian President Sergio Mattarella, who is on a state visit to Korea, on Nov. 8 and exchanged views on ways to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the fields of industry, space, and high technology, as well as key international and regional issues. The two leaders praised the steady development of friendly and cooperative relations in various fields between the two countries, which share the universal values of freedom, human rights and the rule of law, and decided to take bilateral relations to a new level next year on the occasion
By Lee Jon-young The following article was contributed by Lee Chil-yong, former expert member of the Cultural Heritage Administration to the Diplomacy Journal. –Ed. Buddhist woodcarver Huh Gil-ryang was born in 1953 in Seungju-gun, Jeollanam-do, and learned the basics of woodcarving from teacher Seo Soo-yeon in 1968 at the age of 15, and learned Buddhist painting from teacher Lee In-ho in 1975 at the age of 22. He was absorbed in Buddhist art at an early age and has been working with Buddhist woodcarving for his entire life. He won the grand prize at the 1977 Buddhist Art Exhibition and was ap
By Kayla Lee Expressing pure beauty in his uniquely structured works, artist Kim Sejoong draws the viewers deep into a magical time in a single space that allows them to see things in a new light and make them look amazing. The thousands and tens of thousands of hours of perseverance they have put in have not been in vain. This is the beauty that reborn European art forms and awakened the sense of art in the East. It will be a fantastic time to open the eyes and minds of the viewers with the reorganization of space and the illumination of vision, guiding them to a new world. Looking at Artist
By Lee Kap-soo “India is organizing the vibrant Gujarat 2024, when India is going to celebrate its 100th year of independence in 2047,” said Ashwini Kumar, principal secretary of the Urban Development & Urban Housing Department, the Government of Gujarat in India. Delivering the Gujarat presentation held at Lotte Hotel in Seoul on Nov. 7, Ashwini Kumar said, “India is the world's 5th largest economy with the largest working age population, and she is a preferred investment destination. India has consistently outpaced the global GDP growth and is poised to become the third largest economy o
By Lee Kap-soo Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok, who is visiting Japan, participated in the 7th Korea-Japan Governors' Meeting, adding his voice to the call for better relations between the two countries through exchanges and cooperation between local governments. Incheon Metropolitan City announced that Mayor Yoo participated in the "7th Korea-Japan Governors' Meeting" between the Korea Council of Metropolitan Governors and the Japan National Governors' Association on November 1 in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan. Mayor Yoo attended the meeting as the vice chairman of the Korea Council of Metropolitan