HUFS JMCE (Director Prof. Sihong Kim) held the 2024 International Conference on Tuesday, July 2 at 3:30 p.m. in the conference room on the 11th floor of the main building on campus. The theme of the day was Korea-EU cooperation on security and global value chains, and there were presentations and discussions by six domestic and foreign diplomats and scholars.
Former EU Ambassador to the Republic of Korea Michael Reiterer introduced the emergence of the Indo-Pacific concept from the economy-oriented Asia-Pacific to the security-focused Indo-Pacific concept, arguing that cooperation among countries with shared values is important, but even when it is not, it is necessary to continue diplomatic efforts. Regarding the recent establishment of Permanent Mission to the NATO of Korea, Yoon Soon-goo, former South Korean ambassador to the EU, predicted that cooperation between the United States and Japan is important to deter North Korea’s nuclear demonstrations, and that peace and stability in the East Asian region can be promoted through information sharing and cooperation on the US nuclear capabilities. However, negative opinions have been expressed about the establishment of a security organization such as the Asian version of NATO, which has been raised in some countries recently.
Mason Richey, a professor at the Graduate School of International and Area Studies at the Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, argued that the possibility of hybrid warfare and the formation of minilaterals can be valid, and Kang Yoo-duk, director of the EU Research Institute, said that the concept of value chains should be included in today＇s trade practices in order to produce effective results. Lastly, Tomasz Wierzbowski of Eurarex Korea, gave the example of the recent cooperation between Korea and Poland in the field of defense and emphasized the fact that the two countries are ideal partners.
