1. The Korea National Diplomatic Academy (KNDA) (Chancellor: Kim Joon-hyung), will hold the 2019 ASEAN-Republic of Korea (ROK) Think Tank Strategic Dialogue, under the theme of “New Southern Policy and the Future of Korea-ASEAN Relations,” at the KNDA on Friday, October 25.

2. With about one month left before the 2019 ASEAN-ROK Commemorative Summit and the 1^st Mekong-ROK Summit set to take place this November, experts from major diplomacy and security think tanks in 10 ASEAN member countries will be invited to the upcoming Track-II dialogue. The participants will discuss the significance and deliverables of the 2019 ASEAN-ROK Commemorative Summit, and present ways and alternative policies to step up future cooperation between the ROK and ASEAN member countries through the implementation of the New Southern Policy at the conference.

○ The upcoming conference will bring together about 20 experts from leading think tanks of the 10 ASEAN member countries including Chairman and Chief Executive Rastam Mohd Isa of the Institute of Strategic and International Studies Malaysia, President Nguyen Vu Tung of the Diplomatic Academy of Vietnam, the key think tank of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam, Executive Director Philips Vermonte of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies of the Republic of Indonesia, Chairman Nyunt Maung Shein of the Myanmar Institute of Strategic and International Studies of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar, and President Victor Andres C. Manhit of the Stratbase Albert del Rosario Institute for Strategic and International Studies of the Republic of the Philippines.

○ On the ROK side, Chancellor of the KNDA Kim Joon-hyung, Ambassador for Public Diplomacy Chang Jae-bok of the ROK Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Former Secretary General of the ASEAN-Korea Centre Chung Hae-moon, Professor of the School of International Relations at the Catholic University of Korea Choi Young-jong, Professor at Kangwon National University Kim Hyung-jun and Head of the Center for ASEAN-Indian Studies of the KNDA Choi Won-gi will join the event.

3. On the occasion of this forthcoming conference, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs will lay an institutional foundation for mutual exchange among civil experts of the ROK and ASEAN member countries by institutionalizing and maintaining communication channels between the KNDA (the Center for ASEAN-Indian Studies) and major diplomacy and security think tanks in the ASEAN member countries.