외교부

제6차 제주평화연구원-나우만재단 공동워크숍 기조연설

2011.10.6(목)
제주평화연구원


6th Jeju Peace Institute-Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty Joint Workshop
“East Asian Community Building: Cultural Diplomacy as a Policy Tool of Soft Power”

Keynote Speech

Amb. Lee Joon-gyu,
Chancellor,
Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security

Excellency Han Tae-kyu, the President of Jeju Peace Institutie,
Mr. Walter Klitz, Resident representative of Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty Korea Office,
Ladies and gentlemen,

It is my honor to be here and participate in the 6th joint workshop hosted by Jeju Peace Institute and Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Liberty, to discuss cultural diplomacy, which is an important tool for East Asian community building. Nowadays, a nation’s cultural riches are seen as a core element of its competitiveness and it has become a useful tool to deepen the credibility and confidence among the people from different countries. In line with this, cultural diplomacy is getting more important than ever, as a new pillar of foreign policy. Therefore, it is timely to discuss cultural diplomacy, congruent with a vision to build an East Asian community.

Cultural diplomacy is achieved through the promotion of cultural activities. It is a process of building a two-way street. And it is about developing respect for others and understanding their ways of thinking. Since culture is a basis for one’s view and behavior, through cultural interaction and people-to-people exchanges, the people from different countries can improve mutual understanding, establish a foundation of trust, and friendly feeling. Moreover, cultural understanding has spill-over effects on other political and economic areas.

Public diplomacy is to approach the people of other countries directly by means of art, knowledge, media, language, aid and so on. It is beyond the traditional government-oriented diplomacy. Cultural diplomacy is an essential way to implement public diplomacy.

 Public diplomacy is related with the concept of “Soft Power,” introduced in “Soft Power: The Means to Success in World Politics” by Joseph S. Nye Jr. in 2004. Nye defines it as “the capability of a state to obtain the outcome it wants, through attraction and persuasion rather than reliance on methods of payment or coercion.” These days, the subject and object of diplomacy has expanded from the government-oriented actors to private ones such as non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The importance of the role of the so-called 'soft power' assets in diplomacy has grown considerably. The soft power assets include culture, national values and brand image, while the hard power assets are politics, security and economy.
Let me take some examples of successful public diplomacy around the world. When Poland tried to enter the European Union (EU), people within the EU worried the inflows of low-wage Polish workers into EU countries and Western European labor market. Against this backdrop, the Polish government continued to persuade not only the government of every EU country but also the people of the EU. The Polish government promised to make efforts to amend its labor laws and rules, and to limit its labor market to conform to EU standards. At last, Poland succeeded in entering the EU in 2004, and the worries on labor market were not realized until now. A report even says that opening the labor market to the Eastern European countries including Poland brought positive effects as labors from those countries met the needs of western countries.
There is another example: the U.S. President, Barak Obama’s speech at Cairo University in June, 2009. To get the hearts and minds of Arab people, he opened the speech with ‘Assalaamu alaykum’, an Arab greeting meaning ’May peace be with you’. He showed respect for Islam culture, mentioning Muslims’ contributions to mathematics, chemicals, language, and more. Though the president spoke frankly about Palestinian and Israeli conflict, he still emphasized reconciliation and peace. He quoted from the Quran three times. His speech was based on deep understanding of Islamic culture, and he even tried to show respect with appropriate gesture.

Foreign Minister Kim emphasized public diplomacy in his inaugural speech, presenting four diplomatic strategies to respond to new challenges and prepare for the future. Those strategies are total diplomacy, complex diplomacy, digital network diplomacy, and soft power diplomacy.

Considering that Foreign Ministers in the past mainly focused on strategies for peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and national economic growth, Foreign Minister Kim’s proposal of the four strategies has drawn particular attention. Globalization, proliferation of democracy, and the advancement in communication technology have transformed the conduct of diplomacy. In this fast-changing world, the key elements of diplomatic strategy are soft power and public diplomacy.

 Now, I’m turning to the cultural diplomacy of the Korean government. Cultural diplomacy became one of the important strategies for the future. These days, Hallyu or the Korean wave is spreading not only in Asia, but also in Europe and America. Many developing countries have expressed their wish to share and learn from Korea’s development experience. However, for some countries, Korea is still seen as a country of violent protests or described as an overnight millionaire. Therefore, the Korean government is trying to put more stress on the cultural diplomacy to enhance the understanding of Korea and improve its national brand value.

We need to pursue well-coordinated and systematic approach to public diplomacy. Now, let me introduce Korean Foreign Ministry’s efforts to take up the task to strengthen public diplomacy. MOFAT made the year 2010 as the starting point to promote public diplomacy. We established the "Korea Public Diplomacy Forum (KPDF)," a permanent civil advisory group in the field of public diplomacy. And MOFAT designated the Ambassador for Public Diplomacy to control and coordinate the public diplomacy strategy.

 In addition, MOFAT has been strengthening the diplomatic capability of local governments and civil groups by supporting them to enhance their international relations, and aiding non-profit corporations and non-governmental organizations registered at MOFAT to carry out foreign affairs. We are also making efforts to establish cyber communities for non-profit civil groups to enhance the effectiveness in their overseas activities.

Besides, MOFAT strives to enhance cultural exchanges between countries. We implemented the Mutual Cultural Exchange Project, introducing the cultures of regions that have had relatively little interaction with Korea, by holding various cultural events such as performances, exhibitions and film festivals, to improve mutual understanding.

 MOFAT also hosted joint cultural commissions and meetings at the Director-General level to strengthen the institutional foundation for the bilateral cultural exchanges and carried out the 'Cultural Shuttle Project' with, China and Japan to enhance the tri-lateral cultural exchanges in Northeast Asia.

Additionally, MOFAT has been taking its responsibility to promote cultural exchanges and contributed in raising new global discourses on culture by engaging in cultural activities with international organizations such as UNESCO.

Lastly, MOFAT has been active in sports diplomacy as well, hosting international sports games such as the Winter Olympics. This is expected to bring high economic gains and enhance the nation’s brand value. Sports diplomacy helps to promote national prestige, and as a result, it is a key to improving relationship with other countries.

The Korean Wave can be one of many valuable soft power assets. The Korean wave refers to the fast growing popularity of Korean entertainment and culture. It was first driven by TV dramas followed by movies, pop music and food. These days, the Korean wave became very popular in Japan, China and Southeast Asia.

Through the Korean Wave, the people in East Asia came to understand Korean culture, and it also triggered interest in the nation. Naturally, people-to-people exchanges have increased. As we can see through the Korean wave, cultural diplomacy plays an important role in improving mutual understanding. Mutual understanding can lead to closer feeling and intimacy and improve coordination in other areas, such as boosting economic and political cooperation. And it should be a “two-way street” exchange in order to bear meaningful fruits.

I thank all those who were involved in the preparation for this timely and important workshop.  I ask all the participants here, in this workshop for their valued advice and support to re-establish our relationship in cultural diplomacy.

Thank you.