King's College London welcomed the Minister of Foreign Affairs for the Republic of Korea, Park Jin, for a roundtable discussion to mark the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and the United Kingdom.
Minister Park met with academics and postgraduate students from King's on 28 September to discuss global diplomacy, the past and present of diplomatic relations between Korea and the UK and the shared values that continue to underpin the relationship.
Roundtable guests shared their views with the minister on foreign policy and discussed major global challenges including relations on the Korean peninsula, China, North Korea-Russia relations, and Korea-Japan relations.
Professor 'Funmi Olonisakin, Vice President (International, Engagement & Service) at King's, delivered the opening address and the event was chaired by Professor Ramon Pacheco Pardo, head of the Department of European and International Studies.
It was an honour to host Minister Park to learn about and discuss Korea's foreign and security policy, as well as Korea-UK relations. This discussion underscores King's position as a global hub for our understanding of contemporary Korea and Asian and global geopolitics.
Professor Ramon Pacheco Pardo
Prof Olonisakin said: "King's is defined by the diversity and strength of its partnerships which stretch across the world. King's partnerships in Korea in particular have developed from individual academic research partnerships into an emerging centre of excellence at King's.
"It was a great pleasure, therefore, to welcome Minister Park, a King's College London alumnus, and to hear about Korea's vision of a Global Pivotal State."
Joining the roundtable were academic experts and students from the Faculty of Social Science and Public Policy, King's Business School and Faculty of Arts and Humanities.
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Vice President (International, Engagement & Service)
Head of the Department of European & International Studies and Professor of International Relations
