France wishes to play full part with South Korea on Bastille Day
The day is observed annually on July 14, commemorating the 1789 storming of the Bastille prison, which sparked the French Revolution.
Speaking at the event, French Ambassador to Korea Bertrand Bertoux praised South Korea's resilient democracy.
'In South Korea, the attempted imposition of martial law on Dec. 3 ushered in a period of great uncertainty,' he said.
'Fortunately, Korean democracy has demonstrated its solidity. With the presidential election on June 3, this chapter is closed. A new page is being written.'
'France wishes to play its full part, as it has done throughout Korea's modern history,' Bertoux said, mentioning the French Battalion's role in UN forces during the Korean War and major Korean-French projects such as the Hanul nuclear reactors and the TGV/KTX high-speed train.
Bertoux pointed to AI, space, quantum technology, biotech and decarbonization as focus areas for future ties. He also highlighted France's ambitious France 2030 plan, which supports innovation and funds many Franco-Korean cooperation projects.
'We are proud to be Europe's No. 1 destination for foreign direct investment for the sixth year running, according to the EY barometer.'
He also expressed solidarity with Ukraine at the event.
'Let's help Ukraine, because our collective future depends on it.'
Meanwhile, Lee Kyung-chul, South Korea's High Representative for UN Security Council Affairs, paid tribute to the more than 3,000 French soldiers who fought alongside Koreans for freedom and democracy during the Korean War.
He thanked France for its unwavering commitment to 'liberty, equality, and fraternity,' which has fostered 'genuine affection and admiration' among Koreans.
'Every year, hundreds of thousands of Koreans travel to France for its freedom, its romanticism, and the richness of its cultural heritage,' Lee said.
He also highlighted the strong economic ties, noting, 'France is now Korea's third-largest trading partner within the EU, while Korea is France's third-largest trading partner in Asia.'
'Korea intends to write a new page with the new government driven by a spirit of inclusion and reconciliation,' he said with optimism about Korea's future, recalling the post-World War II foundation of the European Union by France and Germany.
The event was attended by members of the diplomatic corps, embassy officials, foreign residents, Korean company executives, NGOs and media representatives.
sanjaykumar@heraldcorp.com
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Korea Herald
2 hours ago
- Korea Herald
[Kim Seong-kon] Standing before the sign, 'not a through street'
When I lived in New York a long time ago, I frequently saw street signs marked 'dead end' here and there. While I stayed in Provo, Utah, for one year, I saw 'cul-de-sac' road signs before dead-end alleys. Now I am living in Hanover, New Hampshire, where I frequently see another sign: 'not a through street.' 'Dead end' sounds intimidating because it implies that there is no way out and you are stuck there. Naturally, you are likely to be frustrated, dismayed and may even despair when you reach a dead end. 'Cul-de-sac,' which means 'bottom of the bag' in French, metaphorically suggests the 'end of the road.' Compared to them, 'not a through street' sounds much more neutral, just inferring that you need to turn around and come back on the same pathway if you enter. These days, many Koreans who support conservatism seem to feel that South Korea is now facing a 'dead end,' perhaps due to the ramifications of losing the recent presidential election. It is undeniable that South Korea is now confronting unprecedented crises, both domestic and overseas. For example, the country is currently caught at a crossfire between two superpowers that ask sternly, 'Whose side are you on?' South Korea also must survive the technological challenges from its neighboring countries that would directly affect its economy. Undoubtedly, two of the most urgent issues South Korea must tackle today are, firstly, the heavy tariffs the US wants to impose on Korean products and, secondly, the cost-sharing of the US troops stationed in Korea, which will be astronomical if the Korean government consents to the demands of Washington. Both will hurt the Korean economy severely if negotiations are protracted and enter a dead-end alley. South Korea is also concerned about the change of status of the US troops in Korea, from countering North Korea to expanding its operations to East Asia. All in all, the future voyage of South Korea seems to be perilous due to hidden reefs and torpedoes in its passages. However, not everything is grim and gloomy. For example, Reuters recently reported that the US wants South Korea to join efforts to counter its adversary in shipbuilding. If so, shipbuilding will surely bridge South Korea and the US in the future. In the cultural sphere, the future of South Korea looks bright, too. In Travel + Leisure, Thessaly La Force wrote about her experience at the international art fair in Seoul. The title of her article was 'Asia's New Art Capital Is Flashier and More Fabulous Than Miami or Basel — Here's What to Know.' The worldwide popularity of Hallyu, too, assuages the Korean people's anxiety about the future of their country. Recently, I came across a YouTube video in which the YouTuber introduced the touching story of Olivia Sinclair, a features writer and video journalist for the BBC. She flew to South America to cover the K-pop concert held in Sao Paulo, Brazil, with her cameraperson, Nigel. Sinclair was an advocate of individualism, 'high art' and highbrow Western culture. Naturally, she was critical of K-pop, which, she thought, was tainted by noise, uniformity and totalitarianism. During the concert, the steel arch structure supporting the big screen on stage collapsed, causing Nigel to become seriously wounded. He required an immediate blood transfusion. The problem was that he had hemophilia and Rh-AB blood. Unfortunately, Rh-AB blood was not available. But while Sinclair agonized in despair, Koreans in Brazil came in as saviors: using social media, they tried very hard to locate Koreans who had the rare Rh-AB blood and finally succeeded in bringing several people to the hospital just in time and saved Nigel's life. Watching their sincere and tremendous efforts to help strangers, Sinclair was deeply moved by the Korean 'bonding' with and 'jeong' for others who needed help. The YouTuber said that Sinclair's experience in Brazil changed her perspective completely. In the past, Sinclair found in K-pop concerts nothing but factory-made smiles, mechanical movements and collective action that did not allow individuality. Now, she realized that Korean unity was, in fact, a beautiful human bond among individuals. She discovered that Korean unity had diversity and thus a nicely accomplished harmony. In Sinclair's eyes, the group-friendly culture of Korea creates 'fences' for individuals to protect them, not to oppress them. At the K-pop concert, therefore, Sinclair found 'harmony,' instead of 'noise,' and the 'community spirit,' instead of 'totalitarianism.' Just like Sinclaire did, we, too, should perceive positive things in our country, instead of negative things. If our culture brings empathy, sympathy and harmony to the globe, we cannot give up our hope for the bright future of South Korea just yet. We may not have entered a 'dead end" road yet. Perhaps we are simply standing before a sign marked, 'not a through street.' If so, we can turn back and take a broad street instead, which will take us to our destination safely.
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Korea Herald
7 hours ago
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Presidential office plays down defense nominee's remarks on OPCON transfer
President Lee Jae Myung's office moved to clarify the administration's position on wartime control of the country's military Tuesday, after the nominee for defense chief, Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Ahn Gyu-back, painted taking full charge of operational control as a key goal. Speaking at a National Assembly hearing on his nomination as defense minister, Ahn said retrieving wartime operational control of the South Korean military from the US-led combined forces was a goal of the Lee administration. "We are aiming to complete the transition (of wartime OPCON) within the Lee administration's term of office," Ahn said in response to a question by People Power Party Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun. The presidential office said however the idea of wartime OPCON transfer within Lee's term office of five years was Ahn's "personal view," and that no deadline has been set. Asked about the projected increase in defense spending once South Korea took full charge of wartime OPCON, Ahn replied, "It depends on the study, but I think it's around 21 trillion won." Reclaiming wartime control of the Korean military, a longtime Democratic Party agenda, was one of Lee's policy pledges as a presidential candidate, although he did not provide a specific timeline on when that might be achieved. Former President Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party had also sought to retake wartime control authority under the pretext of reducing Korea's reliance on the US for self-defense. At the hearing, Ahn drew the line on South Korea possibly developing nuclear latent capabilities. Nuclear latency is a state of having the technology and infrastructure necessary to build a nuclear weapon without necessarily owning one. Ahn also said that Seoul should always keep a wary eye on Pyongyang. "North Korea hasn't changed since the Korean War. We must always view the North with a question mark in mind, regardless of which administration is in power, but also remember that they are our fellow countrymen," he said. Ahn's remarks on Tuesday build on his interview with The Korea Herald on April 24, when he was chief special adviser to then-presidential runner Lee and already widely speculated to be his top choice for defense chief. In the interview, Ahn said that he believes South Korea should have full control of its military in peacetime and during war. Depending on the US for the country's own defense was turning South Korea's armed forces into a "mommy's boy," he said. Ahn also said in the interview that South Korea's falling out of the Non-Proliferation Treaty to cultivate nuclear capabilities was "not an option."
