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| Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Won Hee-ryong speaks during a press conference in Sejong, Tuesday. Courtesy of Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport |
By Lee Kyung-min
Korea will provide timely and necessary resources and decades of experience to expedite the rebuilding of war-torn Ukraine, the country's top infrastructure policymaker said Tuesday.
The reiterated commitment of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Minister Won Hee-ryong came shortly after the state visit of Ukraine's first lady Olena Zelenska and Yulia Anatoliivna Svyrydenko, the country's first vice prime minister who doubles as minister of economic development and trade.
Tuesday's pledge is the continuation of the country's offer of assistance to Ukraine. A team of infrastructure and foreign ministries attended a two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference in Lugano, Switzerland, in July of last year.
The ministry said Korea will be able to use its experience in infrastructure and city planning, as acquired through rapid government-led economic growth.
The assistance may be limited due to thorny diplomatic or military considerations, but humanitarian grounds should be more than enough to help out a peer in need, the minister said.
"The ministry will certainly provide humanitarian assistance," Won said during a press conference in Sejong, south of Seoul, organized on the occasion of marking his first year in office.
"We are perfectly suited to lead the reconstruction drive for our Eastern European peer. We have established a forum whereby Ukrainian officials are maintaining close communication with Korean counterparts through continued networking."
Specifics of the assistance will be outlined during the next week's International Transport Forum (ITF) at the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). ITF is an intergovernmental organization with 64 member countries and is a think tank for transport policy. It organizes the annual summit of transport ministers.
"I will attend the 2023 ITF Summit on Transport Enabling Sustainable Economies next week in Leipzig, Germany, where a session is scheduled to discuss ways to better assist Ukraine. Korea will be able to help first and foremost with smart city planning and the industrial complex construction among many other recovery strategies the Eastern Europe country needs."
Skepticism has not been completely dispelled over the efficacy of the assistance program, mostly because many believe the drawn-out war has no end in sight, Won said.
However, Korea not abandoning the short-sighted perspective will lead to a wasted opportunity Korea's policymakers stand to regret for years.
"The post-war global geopolitical reorientation after Russia's invasion of Ukraine is in its final stages, a reason why we must join the global move before it is too late. We will coordinate with the diplomatic authorities to identify and deliver the best outcomes."
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