By Kang Seung-woo
The first ROK-EU Leaders Forum was held Thursday in Seoul to fortify relations and cooperation between Korea and the European Union, as the free trade agreement (FTA) between the two sides has come into effect.
The newly-launched annual bilateral forum, titled “Opening a New Era of Cooperation between the ROK and EU,” is alternately hosted by the respective parliaments.
The ROK-EU Parliamentarian Diplomacy Council, headed by Rep. Lee Kang-rae of the main opposition Democratic Party, represented the National Assembly and the six-member European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with the Korean Peninsula was the EU equivalent, with Christian Ehler assuming the chairmanship.
The forum also featured high-profile opinion leaders including Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon; Gong Ro-myung, chairman of the East Asia Foundation; Tomasz Kozlowski, EU Ambassador to Korea; Elisabeth Laurin, French Ambassador to Korea; and Sergio Mercuri, Italian Ambassador to Korea.
In the forum, the sides discussed issues of mutual concern and sought ways to increase cooperation and mutual benefits through the FTA.
In particular, the forum dealt with political, economic, social and cultural topics as part of strengthening the strategic partnership and building a mutual favorable cooperation system between the two sides.
The forum addressed three main issues: sharing European experiences; the future of regional integration in East Asia, the ROK-EU FTA and framework agreement; assessing their impact; implementing the strategic partnership between the European Union and Korea; and cultivating new networks and setting an agenda for action in research and development cooperation.
The maiden parliamentary forum, set up in May this year, was organized by the East Asia Foundation and sponsored by Hyundai Motor.
The second event will take place next year, when the Korean National Assembly members make a reciprocal visit to its EU counterpart.
The Korea-EU FTA was signed on Oct. 15 2009 and it has been provisionally in effect since July 1 this year.