| James Kon |
THE bilateral relationship between Brunei Darussalam and the Republic of Korea (ROK) looks set to further strengthen under the ‘New Southern Policy’, the new Korean initiative which aims to elevate the ASEAN-ROK partnership to a much higher level of shared values and interests.
This was highlighted by Ambassador of the Republic of Korea to Brunei Darussalam Yoon Hyun Bong at the reception of Korea’s National Foundation Day held last night at The Empire Hotel & Country Club.
The guest of honour was Minister of Defence II Pehin Datu Lailaraja Major General (Rtd) Dato Paduka Seri Haji Awang Halbi bin Haji Mohd Yussof along with his spouse.
Dressed in the traditional Korean Hanbok, Ambassador Yoon Hyun-bong said, “I feel a tremendous sense of responsibility as an ambassador in the middle of current conditions in the Korean peninsula. President Moon has also assigned me an important task, which is the ‘New Southern Policy’. These are my important assignments during my term.”
She added that the Korean peninsula is currently going through a historic moment. “We are now concentrating on reconciling with North Korea, which is remarkable as the two Koreas have been divided since 1953 after the Korean War. President Moon has consistently emphasised that what we are pursuing is only peace, and a peaceful Korean peninsula is a peninsula free from the threat of nuclear weapons and war.”
She said the Republic of Korea has successfully hosted the PyeongChang Winter Olympics with the participation of a delegation from North Korea. It was a symbolic event which led to the next step towards peace and the recent third inter-Korean summit.
She said, “We can now see some valuable outcome. Everything was made possible with the support from the international society. Let us have peace and prosperity without any fear of nuclear weapons and missiles on the peninsula, I look forward to your continuous cooperation.”
She lauded, “In 1989, ASEAN and the Republic of Korea initiated cooperation which has transformed into a thriving partnership in all areas. However, there is still a growing imperative for greater collaboration between ASEAN and ROK for the well-being of our peoples. It is in this context that the ROK launched a new initiative, the ‘New Southern Policy’, which aims to elevate the ASEAN-ROK partnership to a much higher level of shared values and interests. It has three main pillars, so called three ‘P’ strategies that represent people, prosperity, and peace.”
The Korean ambassador said the foreign ministers of the two countries have exchanged opinions on various occasions for the past years.
In terms of economic exchanges, the ambassador said, “The Raja Isteri Pengiran Anak Saleha Bridge was completed successfully last year by Daelim. Direct flights between Brunei and Korea have boosted the tourism between the two countries, and I am sure this will go up further as more flights have been added, three times a week now, since last August.”
She added, “Some Korean entertainment shows have aired the beauty of Brunei so more Koreans could get to know about this beautiful country. Annually our embassy hosts our own cultural events, such as the K-Festival, the K-dream night, and K-movie night. This year, once again, we participated in Brunei’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ Hari Raya open house, and had a chance to introduce Korean food.”
She continued, “We have also participated in the ‘Higher Education Expo’ in February to attract more enthusiastic students. As a result, I am really happy to see that the number of UBD students who chose Korea as their ‘Discovery Year’ is steadily increasing. I am also pleased to see that youth from both countries visit each other every year.”
The Korean Embassy in Brunei Darussalam is relatively small but has some major achievements with the efforts of the staff, she said.
She added, “I am really excited now as there are still more things I have to do. During my term as ambassador, I will give my utmost effort to further develop the bilateral relations as well as the people-to-people exchanges to obtain a prosperous future for both countries while bringing peace to the world. That is the real meaning of the 3Ps in the ‘New Southern Policy’.”
The highlight of the celebration was the cake cutting ceremony by Ambassador Yoon with Minister of Defence II and his spouse.