By Lee Kap-soo The Federation of Middle Market Enterprises of Korea (FOMEK) delivered a total of 12 recommendations to the Mexican government on Nov. 13, including strengthening new investment incentives and improving administrative procedures. Through the 'Recommendation to Resolve Difficulties for Midsize Enterprises in Mexico', the FOMEK said that in the context of deteriorating investment conditions in Mexico, such as the 30% corporate tax rate, the second highest among OECD countries, a 20% increase in the minimum wage in 2023, and a strong peso, bold institutional support to ease initial
By Kim Ji-eun Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin, who is in France for the Paris Peace Forum, met with the President of Ghana, the President of the Senate of Kenya, and the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs of Uganda on Nov. 10 -11. During his meetings with the African leaders, he requested their support for the 2030 Busan World Expo and exchanged views on ways to promote bilateral practical cooperation. Park also invited African leaders to the Korea-Africa Summit. Park first met with Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo at the Forum on the morning of November 10, and expressed
By Lee Jon-young Gwangmyeong City Mayor Park Seung-won met with an international exchange delegation on social economy of Costa Rica and expressed his intention to continue mutual exchanges including fair trade. Mayor Park held a meeting with a visiting group including Costa Rican Fair Trade official Alejandro Garcia at City Hall on Nov. 10 and said, "Gwangmyeong City is creating many best practices as a fair trade city. We hope to work together with Costa Rica to change the world such as carbon neutrality." The Costa Rican delegation's visit to Gwangmyeong City was triggered by the city's vis
By Kayla Lee The 26th World Peace Art Exhibition Award Ceremony was successfully concluded on November 7 at the Hangaram Museum of Art in Seoul, Korea, with an invitational exhibition of World Peace Art leaders and outstanding artists. The World Peace Art Exhibition, which is celebrating its 26th edition this year, is positioned as a unique art event that can flexibly develop discourses on the environment, ecology, life, civilization, society, science, and thought based on its unique environment. The 26th World Peace Art Exhibition Award Ceremony, which is held annually with the aim of contrib
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 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 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 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 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 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 The following article was contributed by the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Seoul to the Diplomacy Journal.--Ed. For the first time in history, in the capital of Uzbekistan will take place a summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization. The summit of the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) will be held in Tashkent on 8-9 November. Our country has been a member of the organization since November 1992, but this is the first time in the history of independent Uzbekistan and this association that a multilateral summit within the framework of the ECO is being held on Uzbek soil. The
By Kayla Lee LG Electronics hosted the finals of the 2023 Global IT Challenge for Youth with Disabilities (GITC) in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, from October 24-28. The successful event, held offline for the first time in four years, saw 461 youth with disabilities from 18 different countries compete in a total of six, diverse IT challenges. The challenges included the two-part eTool challenge, a test of participants’ skill creating presentation slides and utilizing spreadsheets; the eLifeMap challenge, an assessment of one’s ability to conduct text and image searches online; the eContent
By Lee Kap-soo Hyundai Motor ASEAN HQ launched the Future Mobility School in collaboration with the UNESCO APCEIU and the South Korean Ministry of Education, expanding the educational program to ASEAN countries, the company said on Nov. 6. The classes have been in session since August for the fall semester of 2023, at a total of 12 schools – three in Indonesia, five in Malaysia and four in Cambodia. The Future Mobility School was first introduced by Hyundai Motor Company and the South Korean Ministry of Education in 2016, and this year, Hyundai Motor ASEAN HQ worked together with the UNESCO AP