WORLD TRENDS IN 2011
Chapter 1 Overview of the International Situation _ 12
Chapter 2 Korea’s Foreign Policy _ 23
Chapter
1
Overview of the International Situation
1. Overview of International Politics
1) World Overview
Volatility along with uncertainty were apparent in 2011. While the U.S. sustained its international influence, there were important international issues such as the rise of China, the deepening economic crisis in the Euro zone, and pro-democracy movements among Arab countries.
In 2011, Iran and North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons continued to threaten international security, while the Fukushima nuclear accident in March made the issue of nuclear safety a global issue. Ever since, the issues of nuclear security and nuclear safety are discussed in an interconnected way.
With regard to climate and environment issues, the COP 17, which was held in Durban, South Africa in November 2011, adopted the ‘Durban Platform’, which extended the Kyoto Protocol among the advanced countries and reached a consensus to establish a new framework in climate change in which all parties would participate starting from the year 2020. The Protocol is the sole international agreement that stipulates the reduction of greenhouse gases among advanced countries based on historical responsibility. The extension would help sustain the Kyoto Protocol system for a while longer.
Meanwhile, the Fourth High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness (HLF-4), a type of Expo in the field of international development cooperation, was successfully held in
World Trends in 2011 Busan in November 2011 with over 3000 participants including representatives from
over 160 countries and 70 international organizations. Participants agreed to launch a new Global Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation the embraces all relevant agents and methods. Having taken the initiative to adopt the ‘Seoul Development Consensus’during the G20 Summit in November 2010, followed by the creation of a new development cooperation paradigm at the HLF-4, Korea has moved from an international rule-taker to a rule-setter.
2) Regional Overview
Following the death of Osama bin Laden and the alleviation of burdens of wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the U.S. actively promoted its reengagement policy in the Asia- Pacific region to enhance its leadership in the region. To be more specific, it carried out various policies such as deepening bilateral alliances including the ROK-U.S.
alliance, reinforcing cooperation with East Asian countries, participating in multilateral forums (EAS, APEC, ASEAN, etc.) and actively pursuing the Trans-Pacific Partnership in a complex and multi-dimensional manner.
As a result of the Great East Japan Earthquake and the Fukushima nuclear accident, Korea, Japan and China issued a summit declaration specifying advanced cooperation in nuclear safety and disaster management at the 4th Trilateral Summit Meeting, held in Tokyo on May 22, 2011. In addition, the official launch of the
‘Trilateral Cooperation Secretariat’in September 2011 made progress in institutionalizing the Trilateral Cooperation.
In Southeast Asia, although conflicts arose within and out of the area such as the border dispute between Thailand and Cambodia and mounting tension for sovereignty over the South China Sea between Vietnam, the Philippines and China, relations between Thailand and Cambodia improved after Thailand underwent a leadership change in August 2011 and conditions for a peaceful solution to the South China Sea issue were established through the adoption of Guidelines for the Implementation of the Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea(DOC) between China and ASEAN at the ASEAN Regional Forum(ARF) Foreign Ministers’Meeting in July 2011.
Meanwhile, the U.S. and Australia announced the ‘U.S.-Australia Force Posture Initiatives’, which included the presence of U.S. Marines in Australia and U.S. force’s
use of Australia’s military facilities, during President Obama’s visit to Australia in November 2011. It was appraised that the U.S. demonstrated its strategy for reinforcement in its role in the Asia-Pacific region as well as its response to the continuously changing security environment through the U.S.-Australia alliance.
In Southwest Asia, in spite of the aftermath of the European financial crisis, a relatively stable growth was maintained in 2011 based on India’s high growth rate of 6.5%. There were also developments in regional peace and stability. India and Pakistan, which have been engaged in conflicts arising from territorial disputes and terrorism, resumed dialogue beginning with the Prime Ministers’Meeting in March 2011. In Sri Lanka and Nepal, reconciliation and reconstruction were promoted steadily after their civil wars. Furthermore, the International Security Assistance Force(ISAF) began to transfer responsibilities concerning security over to the Afghan government to set the basic conditions for peace and security in the medium to long- term. Nevertheless, NATO’s mistaken bombing of Pakistani guard posts strained relations between the U.S. and Pakistan, and the killing of bin Laden increased the possibility of terrorist attacks by rebel forces, making regional security volatile.
The financial crisis in the Euro zone continued in 2011. The adoption of a very tight fiscal policy among southern European countries reduced welfare benefits, led to high unemployment rates, and triggered large-scale demonstrations and strikes all throughout the region. The governments of Ireland, Greece, Portugal, and Spain underwent changes, all of which went through a serious financial crisis, and an anti- EU sentiment emerged as a major issue in the domestic politics of various European countries. Under such circumstances, the EU members placed great efforts to overcome the crisis by providing countries with bailouts and preparing measures to strengthen the financial integrity of its members through the EU Council and Summit Talks.
In the Latin American region, the respective outcomes of presidential elections in Peru, the Argentine Republic, Nicaragua, and Guatemala show the various idealogical and political spectrums, which ranged from an anti-American left-wing group in Venezuela to pragmatism focusing on the market economy and economic development, recently converged in the middle. Political conflicts in the region have displayed a trend towards resolution. For example, Honduras, disqualified by the Organization of American States (OAS) for its military coup in 2009, regained
World Trends in 2011 membership with the former President Zelaya’s return in June 2011. The efforts
toward regional, political, and economic integration resulted in the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) in December 2011, which was the first exclusive community among only Latin American states excluding the U.S. and Canada and differentiated itself from the existing OAS through the medium of historical and cultural homogeneity.
In the Middle East and Africa, democratization began with Tunisia’s Jasmine Revolution in December 2010 and subsequently spread across Egypt, Yemen, Libya and Syria, ensuing the so-called Arab Spring. The results of the Arab Spring consist of the launch of a constitutional assembly in Tunisia, the resignation of Egypt’s president Mubarak and Yemen’s president Saleh, and the ousting of Libya’s ruler Gaddafi, giving rise to change as well as the collapse of robust authoritarian regimes. However, whether democracy will take root successfully remains to be seen due to the weak economy and lack of experience among the newly emerging civil societies and political groups.
Iran’s pursuit of nuclear weapons prompted Israel to demonstrate its will to mobilize an air raid, to which Iran responded with a threat to close the Strait of Hormuz, ultimately further escalating tensions. While peace talks between Israel and Palestine made little progress, Palestine sought entry into the UN in September 2011, but came to a standstill due to the U.S.’indication of exercising its veto.
In sub-Saharan Africa, according to the results of the referendum on South Sudan’s secession, North and South Sudan were separated in July 2011, and the Republic of South Sudan achieved independence. However, conflicts concerning pending issues worsened, such as the distribution of oil revenue as well as demarcation of boundaries.
2. Overview of the Global Economy
1) World Overview
The global economic growth in 2011 quickly slowed down especially in developed countries due to the Euro zone crisis, skyrocketing international oil prices, the massive earthquake in eastern Japan, among other incidents. The overall global
economy grew by about 4%, which was attributed to relatively strong growth rate of 6% in emerging countries, including China’s approximately 9% growth rate, despite minimal growth in advanced countries.
In September 2011, the United States witnessed ‘Occupy Wall Street’protests caused by the public’s discontent with the high unemployment rate, the widening gap between the rich and the poor, and immorality of financial institutions. The protests spread across the world, serving as a fundamental introspection on the problems caused by capitalism.
The G20 Summit, which has enhanced its own position as a global governance system for international economic financial areas since the Seoul Summit in 2010, was held in Cannes, France, to discuss major issues such as dealing with the Euro zone financial crisis, a strategy for global economic growth, and trade and development. On the basis of the discussions, leaders of the G20 issued a summit declaration and adopted the ‘Cannes Action Plan’stipulating policy cooperation to address short-term vulnerabilities in the global economy and to achieve strong, sustainable and balanced growth.
At the 8th WTO ministerial conference held in December 2011, WTO members rejected protectionism, reaffirmed their stance supporting the multilateral trading system, and approved the accession of Russia. Furthermore, the WTO covered approximately 99% of the global trade. In addition, the year 2011 marked the tenth anniversary of China’s entry into the WTO, which highlighted the achievements under the WTO system, including market opening, trade facilitation, and advancement of trade rules.
Meanwhile, countries around the world consistently pursued the expansion of free trade through free trade agreements. In East Asia, the ROK, Japan, and China conducted a joint study on a trilateral FTA by government officials, business and academia to further increase the possibility of regional economic integration. The U.S.
discussed the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement(TPP) with Australia and Japan, and the governments of Mexico and five Central American countries concluded a single FTA unifying the existing trade agreements among them.
World Trends in 2011
2) Regional Overview
The U.S. enjoyed a growth rate of 2.8% in the fourth quarte due to manufacturing-centered recovery in industrial production and improvement in employment during the second half of 2011, displaying gradual growth. In addition, in order to promote economic recovery via an active foreign trade policy as well as fiscal stimulus, the U.S. joined the TPP and sought to expand it.
China, which became the world’s second largest economy in 2010, recorded a growth rate of 9.2% in 2011. According to its 12th Five-Year Socioeconomic Development Plan beginning in the year 2011, the Chinese government has been striving to prevent a bubble economy caused by inflation and change its direction of economic development from its existing export-oriented quantitative growth to a domestic demands-oriented qualitative approach. Furthermore, in order to secure a new growth engine, China has actively continued to foster ‘strategic emerging industries’such as next generation information technology, new materials, new- energy vehicles, and new energy.
The Japanese economy experienced a growth rate of -0.9% in 2011, resulting from the aftermath of the massive earthquake and Fukushima nuclear accident on March 11. Japan posted its first annual trade deficit in 31 years, due to the rapid decline in exports caused by the devastating earthquake as well as the slowdown in the global economy. Japan has already been suffering from many issues such as its declining and aging population, deflation and contraction of the domestic market, and deepening government deficit. Thus, the Japanese government has continued discussions on raising the consumption tax since 2009 to overcome such concerns.
Russia reached a growth rate of approximately 4% in 2011, the same as in 2010.
For its domestic economy, Russia has carried out a modernization plan to overcome the economic crisis and break its economy’s dependence on resource. Despite external conditions such as the economic recession in the U.S. and Europe, high oil prices, and an increase in domestic demand together supported the Russian economy to maintain its growth trend.
ASEAN member states in Southeast Asia, for the goal of building an ASEAN Community by 2015, have pushed for the establishment of an economic community by agreeing on the framework for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership(RCEP) at the ASEAN summit talks in November 2011. Meanwhile, India,
the leading power of the Southwest Asian economy, experienced a slowdown in its domestic economy due to the financial crisis in Europe. However, in spite of such obstacles, India achieved a nominal GDP of US$1.5 trillion (ranked ninth in the world) and a high growth rate of 6.5% in 2011 with sound growth potential comprised of a large population, natural resources, and strong domestic market, leading the economic recovery in the region. Foreign capital increasingly flowed into the region since the Indian government opened its circulation market and Sri Lanka and Nepal regained political stability following an end to their respective civil wars. In addition, countries in the region have made consistent efforts to vitalize regional economic cooperation with the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) at the center. Thus, Southwest Asia has established conditions to develop its regional economy in the medium to long-term.
The financial crisis experienced by some Euro zone countries beginning in 2010 continued in 2011. In 2011, the European economy recorded a growth rate of 1.5%, with firm growth achieved by countries like Germany, France, and the Netherlands, as well as negative growth posted by those suffering a financial crisis including Greece and Portugal. In December 2011, the European Union summit agreed to implement countermeasures for solving financial crisis including a European Stability Mechanism as of 2012.
The Latin American economy recorded a growth rate of 6.1% in 2010 and 4.3%
in 2011 due to expanded exports of raw materials such as minerals and food and increased foreign direct investment from China and other major countries. Regional economic integration accelerated. In particular, Mexico signed a single FTA with Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, and El Salvador in October 2011.
Colombia pushed for an active policy on trade liberalization including an FTA with the U.S., ROK, and so forth. Furthermore, four countries including Mexico, Colombia, Peru, and Chile, which have placed high value on the market economy, established a
‘Pacific Alliance’while Colombia promoted the Look Asia policy. Thus, Latin American countries intensified the expansion of economic and trade cooperation with the Asia- Pacific region. Meanwhile, the world’s 6th largest economy, Brazil, strengthened protectionism in the automobile and other industries amid the skyrocketing currency value attributed to foreign capital flow.
Countries in the Middle East and North Africa achieved an average growth rate of
World Trends in 2011 3.5% in 2011. The economies of oil-exporting countries gradually improved benefiting
from high oil prices. In particular, members of the Gulf Cooperation Council(GCC) enjoyed a high growth rate of approximately 8% during the second half of 2011 due to high oil prices as well as the increase in oil production in response to Libya’s decreased production. On the other hand, oil-importing countries including Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan sustained minimal growth due to sociopolitical instability and deteriorating economic situations across the world including Europe. Sub-Saharan Africa recorded a growth rate of 5.1% in 2011, maintaining its ten-year trend towards growth. Though countries in the region still carry political risks, they enjoyed dynamic economic growth, mainly due to the continuous expansion of resource development and inflow of overseas investment, high population growth rate, and improving labor- productivity.
3. Overview of the Situation in and around the Korean Peninsula
The Six-Party Talks process to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue has been stalled since a deadlock due to the verification issues in 2008. In particular, inter- Korean relations and talks on the denuclearization of North Korea ran into difficulties as a result of a series of military provocations from the North such as its long-range missile launch and second nuclear test in 2009, the attack on the ROK’s naval ship Cheonan, the artillery shelling on Yeonpyeong Island and the disclosure of a uranium enrichment facility at Yongbyon in 2010. Nonetheless, the ROK Government continued its efforts throughout the year of 2011 with a view to resolving the North Korean nuclear issue through dialogue, given its urgency and significance in terms of national security and international non-proliferation.
However, in light of North Korea’s aforementioned provocative behavior undermining the implementation of the two follow-up agreements (the February 13 and October 3 Agreements of 2007) of the Joint Statement on September 19, 2005 and the relevant UN Security Council Resolutions, the ROK Government came to the conclusion that North Korea should first demonstrate its sincerity toward denuclearization to prevent the Six-Party Talks from becoming a ‘talks for the sake of
talks’. Therefore, the ROK Government established a stance that North Korea’s intention toward denuclearization should be ascertained prior to the resumption of the Six-Party Talks by North Korea’s concrete actions including the suspension of its uranium enrichment program(UEP) at Yongbyon, and the reinstatement of IAEA inspectors. In addition, the ROK Government shared the view with participants of the Six-Party Talks including the U.S., Japan, China, and Russia, that it is essential to create an environment conducive to the resumption of the Talks by ensuring North Korea’s sincerity for denuclearization through a number of bilateral and multilateral contacts commencing with an inter-Korean dialogue as the first step. At the same time, the ROK Government continued its diplomatic efforts to garner support from the international community.
The first inter-Korean dialogue on denuclearization was held in Bali on July 22, 2011, and the second in Beijing on September 21, 2011. The two Koreas exchanged views through two rounds of the Six-Party Talks chief negotiators’meeting over various issues pertaining to the denuclearization of North Korea including its implementation of concrete measures for the resumption of the Six-Party Talks.
Meanwhile, high-level talks between the U.S. and North Korea were held in July and October 2011 in a continuous effort to ensure the North to take the measures through bilateral talks.
However, the denuclearization dialogue, which was expected to make tangible progress, was stalled following the announcement of the death of Kim Jong-il, North Korea’s leader, on December 19, 2011. Immediately after the North’s announcement, the leaders and foreign ministers of the ROK, the U.S., Japan, China and Russia made prompt and close consultations through diplomatic channels, making efforts towards the safe management of the political situation on the Korean Peninsula.
Meanwhile, North Korea seems to have established the third-generation power succession comparatively without greater turmoil, by erecting Kim Jong-eun, who had already been nominated as the heir apparent, as the Supreme Leader and Supreme Commander of the North Korean People’s Army.
The key economic policy of North Korea in 2011 was to prepare for a Powerful and Prosperous Nation by 2012 and improve the living standards of its citizens. Placing emphasis on the light industry and agriculture, North Korea tried to resolve its food shortage situation, strengthen productivity in the basic industry sector and build
World Trends in 2011 100,000 homes in Pyeongyang, which ended without any particular outcomes. In the
meantime, North Korea expanded economic cooperation with China consecutively in 2010 and 2011 including a groundbreaking ceremony of a joint development project on Najin and Hwanggeumpyong as well as the promulgation of law on the Special Economic Zone of Hwanggeumpyong and Wihwado, in order to avoid international isolation and overcome economic difficulties.
Pending the 2012 U.S. presidential election, economic issues such as job creation and a cutback on the budget deficit emerged as major national political agenda items, leading to a serious policy debate particularly on the adjustment of the national debt ceiling, a tax increase on high-income groups and the curtailment of social security expenditure. The U.S. government has made it clear that it will continue to maintain its role in the Asia-Pacific region and its defense commitment towards the ROK despite pressure concerning defense spending cuts due to the budget deficit.
During the latter part of Chinese President Hu Jintao’s second term (2007-2012), China pursued stability of its national politics and society, and set out various objectives including consolidation of its unique socialist governing system, stabilization of its people’s livelihood and construction of a harmonious world conducive to the modernization of China through ‘two meetings’(The National People’s Congress and The People’s Political Consultative Conference) in March 2011. Ahead of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China scheduled in the autumn of 2012, the formal process to select new leadership began at the 6th plenary session of the 17th CPC Central Committee in October 2011. In spite of tensions with the countries concerned regarding marine disputes in the South and East China Sea and U.S. arms sales to Taiwan, China managed regional issues including the Korean Peninsula and made efforts to develop cooperative relations with major countries including the U.S., Japan and ASEAN, whilst laying greater emphasis on creating stable internal and international circumstances for the leadership shift.
Japan confronted its national crisis owing to the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami which struck on March 11, 2011, and the subsequent Fukushima nuclear disaster. Although Japan passed a bill in June 2011 for the prompt reconstruction and restoration of damages from its most devastating earthquake ever, the approval ratings for the Kan cabinet continued to fall and consequently, Noda Yoshihiko, the former finance minister, was sworn in as the Prime Minister of the new cabinet in
September 2011.
The Noda cabinet focused on its capacity to resolve pressing domestic issues such as repairing damages caused by the Great East Earthquake and dealing with the Fukushima nuclear disaster, in light of pending issues in its external relations including the rise of China, revitalization of U.S.-Japan relations and territorial disputes with neighboring countries. The Cabinet also aimed to strengthen cooperation with the U.S. in both bilateral and multilateral dimensions by deciding to join the TPP negotiations in November 2011, adhering to the Kan cabinet’s stance placing the U.S.-Japan alliance as an axis of Japan’s national security and foreign policy.
Russia continued to carry out a domestic policy of economic modernization in 2011 as well as to reinforce bilateral and multilateral diplomacy in various sectors such as strengthening economic relations with the CIS including the creation of a Eurasian Economic Union, accession to the WTO and its bid to host the G20 summit in 2013.
Meanwhile, the parliamentary seats of the ruling United Russia Party decreased at the general elections in December 2011, sparking massive rallies condemning election rigging and demanding political reform.
World Trends in 2011
In order to cope with rapid change in the international situation and diplomatic environment in 2011, such as continued uncertainty in the situation on the Korean Peninsula, change in the order in Northeast Asia as a result of China's growing influence, the Eurozone crisis, and instability in the global economy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MOFAT) of the Republic of Korea (ROK) set the following priority tasks: ‘security diplomacy to make the public feel safe and secure’,
‘diplomacy to foster a Global Korea’, and realization of ‘open and fair Foreign Ministry’. Under this policy framework the Ministry placed an emphasis on pursuing the following tasks.
1. Diplomacy to Strengthen Security
In order to strengthen its security, the ROK has exerted diplomatic efforts to prevent provocations by North Korea and induce change in its attitude by closely cooperating with neighboring countries. Regarding ROK-U.S. relations, a series of events such as President Lee’s state visit to the United States and the ratification of the Korea-U.S. (KORUS) FTA contributed to the maintenance of the strong alliance at its best level ever. With China, Japan and Russia, respectively, the ROK further developed the strategic cooperative partnership through frequent high-level exchanges including summit meetings. Meanwhile, the ROK Government maintained the basic Chapter
2
Korea ’s Foreign Policy
position that North Korea needs to demonstrate sincerity with respect to denuclearization through concrete actions so that progress can be achieved in resolving the nuclear issue. In this regard, we exerted diplomatic efforts aimed at denuclearization of North Korea on the occasion of various bilateral and multilateral contacts with neighboring countries, including the two rounds of inter-Korean denuclearization talks. With the United States and Japan, the ROK has fostered a common understanding regarding the reunification of the two Koreas, based on which the three countries coordinated and shared with each other comprehensive and long-term strategies. In addition, faced by the much greater fluidity in the political situation on the Korean Peninsula following the death of Chairman Kim Jong-il, the ROK has continued its efforts to maintain stability and peace on the peninsula in close cooperation with neighboring countries.
2. Diplomacy to Further Enhance Korea’s Standing
Last year the ROK Government further pursued the ‘New Asia Initiative’in such ways as holding the ASEAN+3 Summit Meetings and the Presidential visits to Central Asia. The ROK imbued greater substance into its Strategic Partnership with the EU through a series of measures such as the launch of high-level political dialogue, the entry into force of the ROK-EU FTA and President Lee’s visits to Europe. Moreover, the Presidential visits to Africa and the Middle East and the Prime Ministerial visits to Latin America served to greatly expand Korea’s global networks with emerging economies of the regions. In addition, the ROK Government hosted the 4th High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness in Busan and contributed to the conclusion of the ‘Busan Partnership for Effective Development Cooperation’agreement that recognizes various actors and diverse approaches to development cooperation, thereby enhancing Korea’s status in the international development cooperation arena. And, while actively participating in UN peacekeeping operation activities for the purpose of maintaining international peace and stability by continuing the dispatch of the Dong-myeong troops to Lebanon and the Danbi to Haiti, the ROK Government joined international efforts to support Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) activities in Afghanistan and to combat Somali pirates. As chair country of the G20, the ROK has managed and pursued the tasks that
World Trends in 2011 it proactively initiated in the fields of development, trade, and green growth. Also, the
Korean Government has faithfully carried out follow-up tasks to the 2010 Seoul G20 Summit, further bolstering Korea’s status as one of the leading countries in the world.
Furthermore, the ROK engaged in full and devoted preparations for the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit which was one of the largest scale summits ever, with the Preparatory Committee headed by the Prime Minister and the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit Secretariat headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs playing central roles.
3. Diplomacy to Realize an Advanced Economy
With the aim of expanding Korean enterprises’access to newly emerging markets, the ROK Government has been exerting wide-ranging efforts to expand business diplomacy, dispatch trade and investment delegations, and promote public campaigns on its agricultural produce abroad through the Korean embassies.
Moreover, the ROK reduced tariff burden on the Korean enterprises by actively responding to import regulations of other countries. The ROK paved the way for exports of nuclear power reactors by concluding nuclear cooperation agreements with South Africa and India, and engaged in discussions with Saudi Arabia, Algeria and other countries on signing similar agreements. Moreover, the ROK continued efforts to expand the global FTA network with the entry into force of the FTAs with the EU and Peru and by pursuing the early entry into force of the KORUS FTA, while making progress in FTA negotiations with Australia and Colombia and endeavoring to foster a favorable environment for embarking on negotiations on FTAs with China and Japan, respectively. The ROK continued to play a leading role in moving forward with the Doha Development Agenda (DDA) negotiations, contributing to the strengthening of the multilateral trade system. In addition, the ROK Government has been working on the international expansion of the ‘Low Carbon, Green Growth’strategy through the
‘East Asia Climate Partnership’and the ‘Global Green Growth Institute’.
4. Diplomacy to Serve the Public
The ROK Government exerted every effort to protect overseas Koreans by rescuing crew members of the ‘Samho Dream’Vessel, conducting the emergency evacuation of our nationals from Egypt and Libya in the aftermath of the spread of the democratic movement in the Middle East, and swiftly dispatching the Rapid Response Teams to Japan at the time of the Great East Japan Earthquake, among other efforts.
The Ministry has expanded the public awareness campaign about safe travel abroad by making assurance of the optimum operation of the Consular Call Center, strengthening the Consular Assistant system and the Rapid Response system for Korean nationals in dangerous parts of the world, and always conducting campaigns on safe travel for the public, especially for travellers at the stage of departure from Korea. Moreover, the Korean Government has been operating 236 Passport Agencies so that Korean nationals both within Korea and abroad can promptly and conveniently receive passports. The ROK has promoted its overseas Koreans’convenience by simplifying the procedure to obtain visas from India, expanding the Working Holiday Program with Japan, and mutually recognizing driving licenses with several states in the U.S. such as Texas and Florida. In addition, an integrated online network of Korean nationals was developed through such means as integrating and linking all the websites of overseas Koreans and developing the website Hansang net. Besides, the Korean Government made active preparations for, and promoted campaigns on, the smooth conduct of the parliamentary and presidential elections at the missions for overseas Korean nationals.
5. Public Diplomacy and Expansion of Cooperation with Civil Society
The Ministry exerted active efforts to enhance its standing and to strengthen communication with the world through cultural diplomacy in which the missions and the civil society such as enterprises, NGOs, etc. play a part. Securing the hosting of the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, which has contributed to enhancing our national
World Trends in 2011 image, is seen as a good example of government-civilian cooperation in sports
diplomacy. Moreover, the Ministry has been reinforcing its capacity in public diplomacy through the appointment of an Ambassador for Public Diplomacy and the hosting of the Public Diplomacy Forum in order to proactively respond to the changing diplomatic environment. Moreover, the active use of SNS as a means of enhancing communication with the public also fostered greater efficiency in our diplomatic activities. The overall restructuring of the Ministry’s and its missions’websites led to the establishment of the Global Digital Network which connects missions, civil society and overseas Koreans online.
6. Establishing an Advanced Diplomatic System for the 21st Century
In order to restructure itself as a ministry of placing value on openness and fairness, the Ministry has exerted every effort to establish an advanced diplomatic system for the 21st century. A scandal related to the Ministry’s special recruitment system highlighted problems in the personnel system and management. In order to address such issues, the Ministry devised a personnel and organizational reform plan based on the principles of fairness, openness and competition, and has consistently pushed forward with the plan through the revision of the Foreign Service Officers Act.
The Ministry has strived to strengthen diplomatic competitiveness through measures for opening and exchanges such as personnel exchanges and the recruitment of experts from the private sector. The Ministry realized a fair Ministry through personnel management based on competition and capacity by taking a series of measures such as flexibly prolonging or shortening tenure of heads of mission in consideration of their capacity, strengthening their evaluation, implementing a capacity evaluation process focused on preventing the appointment of those who are not fully qualified for high-level posts, and introducing the Director draft system. Moreover, tasks were reassigned among departments and the Ministry was reorganized in accordance with the changes in the diplomatic environment. Also, the Ministry established new embassies which are intended to strengthen energy and resources diplomacy and to
strengthen cooperation with emerging economies. Furthermore, in tandem with the personnel management reform, the Ministry has prepared for the establishment of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy by reforming the system for the recruitment of diplomats for the purpose of selecting and training talented diplomats.
World Trends in 2011
