The opening ceremony of the Preparatory Committee for the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between Korea and China was held online on the 11th. Former National Assembly Speaker, Moon Hee-sang (center); Honorary Chairman and National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee Chairman Song Young-gil (left in the middle row); and Kim Sung-hwan, a former foreign minister, co-chairman (middle of the upper row), among others, attended the meeting. [photo by committee]
To commemorate the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and China next year, political, diplomatic, cultural, and artistic circles, experts, and youth groups have gathered. The Preparation Committee for the 30th anniversary of Korea-China diplomatic relations held an online launching ceremony in the form of a video conference on the 11th and announced that it was launched in earnest. The plan is to expand joint cooperation projects between the two countries to mark the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and China in 2022 and the year of cultural exchange between Korea and China in 2021 and 2022.
The committee will be led by honorary chairman Moon Hee-sang, who served as chairman of the National Assembly, standing committee chairman Noh Jae-heon, and co-chairman Song Young-gil, as well as Democratic Party lawmakers Park Chung-hee, Roh Woong-rae and Park Chan-dae, JoongAng Ilbo chief editorial writer Lee Ha-kyung, Dankook University professor Kim Jin-ho, Daeil Research Institute chairman Choi Jae-cheon and Seoul Arts Center president Yoo In-taek. Former Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan served as an advisor to the committee. In the future, the Chinese side will also have a Preparation Committee in the same form as Korea.
"Korea and China have been living together in East Asia for nearly 30 years since they began diplomatic relations in 1992," honorary chairman Moon said at the opening ceremony. "At the turning point of the post-COVID-19 era, cooperation between South Korea and China went beyond quarantine cooperation to promote civilian exchanges and cooperation in the economic field." Former Minister Kim Sung-hwan said, "The next 30 years is a big task for us to develop Korea-U.S. relations and Korea-China relations in harmony," adding, "I hope that the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations will serve as an opportunity to support future relations between Korea and China."
The committee is in charge of supporting the Korea-China Future Development Committee, an official organization between the two countries to commemorate the 30th anniversary of Korea-China relations, at the private level. Specifically, with the aim of opening on the day of the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and China (August 24, 2022), the government is promoting a project to establish a commemorative exhibition hall and to expand human exchanges between Korea and China to prepare for the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics. The exhibition hall will display the history of cooperation between Korea and China and the history of the independence movement that the two countries can share.
[Source: JoongAng Ilbo] Reporter Jung Jinwoo