South Korea seeks closer Asean cooperation amid trade tensions with Japan
The South Korean Minister of SMEs and Startups Park Young-sun along with about 40 high-level representatives from the Republic of Korea and Asean nations were in Seoul this week to attend the launch of the “Asean Korean Train: Advancing Together”.
The event, which kicked off on Wednesday, was hosted by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and organised by the Asean-Korea Centre (AKC) to promote economic and socio-cultural cooperation between Asean Member States and the Republic of Korea.
The move also comes amid trade tensions between Japan and South Korea.
The Asean-Korea Train began its 3-day journey in Seoul and travelled to various cities including Busan, Suncheon and Gwangju to promote peace, prosperity, and quality.
It also served as a platform for around 200 delegates from the member states and Korea to exchange ideas that will help move each nation forward.
Dej Churdsuwanrak, executive board of the Thai Chamber of Commerce and Board of Trade of Thailand, said that the event was a great opportunity to brainstorm and share visions for the future and there were many things Thailand can learn from such cooperation.
From the academic perspective, Dr Onusa Nongtrud, lecturer from the Department of Music, Surat Thani Rajabhat University, added that exchanges arising from this type of international collaboration can help widen vision of the students and teachers from different nations.
Moreover, they are likely to embrace new learning methods and apply them in academic uses.
This event was also a preparation for the ASEAN-Republic of Korea Commemorative Summit 2019, which takes place on November 25-26 in Busan.
Korea’s Ambassador to Asean Lim Sung-nam expressed his belief that the event would lay the foundation for increased economic and human exchange between Asean countries and the Republic of Korea while the First Secretary of Royal Thai Embassy in Seoul noted that Thailand will continue to strengthen the well-established relationship between Thailand and South Korea.
“We have already played a major role in moving Asean forward through the 34th Asean summit which was held in June under the chairmanship of Thailand,” he added.
