Korea-ASEAN Summit to Address Green Growth
By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
SEOGWIPO, Jeju Island ― President Lee Myung-bak proposed joint projects with ASEAN, an economic bloc of 10 Southeast Asian nations, Sunday to promote bilateral investment and trade, cultural and tourism exchanges and ``green growth.''
In a keynote speech to the ASEAN-Korea CEO Summit, which opened Sunday for a two-day run at the International Convention Center, Lee called for stronger economic ties between the two sides to open a new era of common prosperity.
``Twenty years have passed since Korea established diplomatic relations with ASEAN. Today's summit between entrepreneurs from Korea and ASEAN provides us with an important opportunity to chart out new plans for common growth,'' Lee said. ``We need to increase cooperation in three areas ― investment and trade, culture and tourism and green growth ― to brace for the changing global economic paradigm.''
The CEO Summit drew some 700 businesspeople from Korea and ASEAN. They are among some 6,500 people who arrived in this resort island to participate in the two-day ASEAN-Korea Commemorative Summit, which opens today.
Over the past two decades, trade between Korea and 10 ASEAN member countries have grown 11 times to $90.2 billion, while Korea's investment in ASEAN has surged 34-fold to $6.8 billion.
ASEAN has become Korea's third-largest trade partner, while Korea is ASEAN's fifth largest.
``The free trade agreement between Korea and ASEAN on commodities, investment and service will bring the two sides closer, economically and diplomatically. We expect bilateral trade to increase to $150 billion by 2015,'' President Lee said.
Lee also emphasized the need for more civilian exchanges, saying that Korea and ASEAN needs to seek more opportunities to understand each other better.
By 2015, the Korean government plans to send 10,000 volunteers to ASEAN countries for goodwill activities and invite 7,000 industrial trainees from ASEAN to share know-how of rapid economic growth, the CEO-turned-President said.
``Annually, more than 3.2 million South Koreans visit ASEAN countries for tourism, while 800,000 people from ASEAN come to Korea. Tourism and cultural exchanges will grow as we keep promoting civilian exchanges,'' Lee said.
He also hoped ASEAN would become one of the country's key partners in opening an era of green growth.
``Climate change is a daunting challenge for the world. At the same time, it provides us with an historic opportunity to develop partnership between Korea and ASEAN,'' Lee said.
``Through joint projects in forestation and development of clean energy sources and carbon reduction technologies, we can become the world's pioneering leaders in those areas,'' he added.