- The Vice Minister delivered welcoming remarks at the 17th Annual Meeting of the Council of the ASEAN-Korea Centre -

1. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Insun attended the reception held on February 13 on the occasion of the 17th Annual Meeting of the Council of the ASEAN-Korea Centre*.

    * ASEAN-Korea Centre : An international organization established in 2009 to promote mutual understanding and cooperation between ASEAN and Korea.

2. In her congratulatory remarks at the reception, Vice Minister Kang acknowledged the unique role of the ASEAN-Korea Centre as the sole international organization in Korea dedicated exclusively to ASEAN affairs. She also commended the Centre for its wide range of activities* and celebrated the success of the first Annual Meeting of the Council following the establishment of the ASEAN-ROK Comprehensive Strategic Partnership** last year. In addition, she encouraged the Centre to continue contributions to promoting trade and investment as well as revitalizing tourism and cultural exchanges between Korea and ASEAN.   

    * ⯅2024 International Conference on ASEAN-Korea Partnership, ⯅Unveiling Ceremony of Jeju Olle Trail 8 Routes : ASEAN-Korea Olle, ⯅ Publication of Korean-language guidebook on ASEAN-Korea environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles and  holding relevant forum, ⯅ASEAN-Korea Youth Summit

   ** Comprehensive Strategic Partnership (CSP) is the highest-level partnership between ASEAN with its dialogue partner. ASEAN established CSP with Australia and China in 2021, the United States and India in 2022, Japan in 2023 and the ROK in 2024.

3. Vice Minister Kang noted that this year marks the first year of CSP implementation and a pivotal moment as ASEAN prepares to present its “ASEAN Community Vision 2045*.” She outlined Korea’s vision for future-oriented cooperation with ASEAN in key areas such as digital transformation, climate change response, and nurturing young generations. She particularly emphasized that digital transformation and climate action represent both challenges and opportunities for the ASEAN community. On that note, she shared with other participants flagship initiatives that the Korean government is planning to start implementing in earnest this year -- the Korea-ASEAN Digital Innovation Flagship (KADIF) and the ASEAN-Korea Cooperation for Methane Mitigation Project**.  

    * A key document laying out ASEAN’s vision for the next 20 years (a successor to the “ASEAN Community Vision 2025”)

   ** A pilot project under the “Partnership for ASEAN-ROK Methane Action (PARMA)” to be implemented from 2024 to 2027 with a total budget of USD20 million with the aim to support ASEAN’s methane reduction efforts.

4. Vice Minister Kang also mentioned Korea’s ongoing efforts to solidify the foundation of future ASEAN-Korea cooperation through capacity building programs, including education of ASEAN’s young talent and advanced STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) scholarship initiatives.

5. The Vice Minister reaffirmed the Korean government’s continued support for the ASEAN-Korea Centre and emphasized that Korea will maintain its ASEAN-centered foreign policy stance while further strengthening its cooperation with ASEAN.