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| Peter Szijjarto, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary, right, and Chang Jae-bok, the ambassador for public diplomacy, prepare to cut the ribbon during an opening ceremony of the Hungarian Cultural Institute, at the UNESCO Building in central Seoul. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk |
By Lee Gyu-lee
The Hungarian government has opened its first Hungarian Cultural Institute in Korea, Thursday, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between South Korea and Hungary.
"With today's opening, a totally new platform of cooperation comes into reality between South Korea and Hungary, which strengthens the general cooperation between the two countries," said Peter Szijjarto, the minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade of Hungary, during the opening ceremony, at the institute in the UNESCO Building, central Seoul.
Mentioning the liberation of Central European countries in the 1990s following the collapse of the Soviet Union, he said Hungary is proud to be the first country among the liberated Central European countries to establish diplomatic ties with Korea.
"And we are even more proud we can say now, after 30 years, that our relationship has never been as good as it is currently," he noted.
He went on to emphasize that such strong bilateral ties could be possible because of the mutual respect of both parties. "Based on this mutual respect, we were able to register pretty significant success recently," he said, referring to Koreans becoming Hungary's top foreign investors this year.
"With the opening of this institute, we would like to express our respect toward the very rich culture of the Republic of Korea," he added.
Back in 1989, South Korea's signing of diplomatic relations with Hungary was a turning point in the former's diplomatic history. The Roh Tae-woo government strove to establish diplomatic relations with Eastern European countries which were then socialist. President Roh, who was optimistic about the possibility of reunification of the two Koreas before the start of the 21st century, pushed for so-called "Northern Diplomacy" to create a diplomatic environment in favor of the unification.
A tough road was ahead of South Korea's establishing diplomatic relations with Eastern European countries, which had originally had strong ties with North Korea. There were opponents at home who were critical of diplomatic relations with the former socialist countries. It was no surprise that North Korea was against the establishment of South Korea-Hungary relations.
South Korean officials secretly met Hungarians to discuss all necessary procedures under the code name "Deep Blue Danube River." South Korea's diplomatic relations with Hungary paved the way for its signing of ties with other Eastern European countries. During President Roh's five year tenure, South Korea established diplomatic relations with 37 countries.
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| Minister Szijjarto gives a congratulatory speech as part of the opening ceremony for Hungary's first cultural institute in Korea. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk |
During a speech at the opening of the cultural center, Chang Jae-bok, South Korean ambassador for public diplomacy, said this year will be a new milestone in cultural cooperation between the two countries. "The Hungarian Cultural Institute in Korea is a channel and window for Koreans to better know and understand Hungary….we expect the institute to play a great role in making Hungary closer and friendlier to Korea."
Kicking off with the traditional Hungarian dance performance on Thursday, the opening event hosted singer Eva Csepregi, from Hungarian pop band Neoton Familia, who performed the song "Korea" at 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul.
The institute will host various cultural events including performances, exhibitions, and sports events to operate as the foundation in spreading Hungarian culture among Koreans.
For the first event after the launch, the institute will hold a craft exhibition with the title "Hands that bond," which includes works from 2019 Cheongju Craft Biennale festival. The exhibition will run at the site from the day of its opening to Jan. 15 next year.
The center is also organizing the "1st Hungarian Film Day in Seoul" to introduce Hungarian films to Korean audiences. Spanning a number of genres including romance and drama, Seven Hungarian films ― four features and three short films ― will be screened on the day, including "Fever at Dawn" (2015) and "Made in Hungaria" (2009). The screenings will be held at CGV Myeongdong in central Seoul, this Saturday.
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