- 51 Member Governments and Related Organizations from 6 Northeast Asian Countries Participated, Sharing Vision for 30th Anniversary -
The NEAR Secretariat successfully held the Ambassador for International Relations Dialogue and the 2026 NEAR Member Workshop at the Hilton Hotel in Gyeongju, Republic of Korea, for a three-day schedule from 18 to 20 March, 2026. The event was attended by approximately 130 participants, including officials from 44 local governments and 7 related organizations across six countries (China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia, Russia, and Uzbekistan).
The NEAR Member Workshop is an annual platform for communication aimed at strengthening human networks between member governments, sharing plans for upcoming major events, and benchmarking excellent policies from each region.
The opening ceremony began with an opening address by NEAR Secretary-General Lim Byung-jin and a welcoming speech by the Vice Governor for Economic Affairs of Gyeongsangbuk-do. Congratulatory remarks were delivered by Yoo Min bong, Secretary-General of the Governors Association of Korea; Lee Hee sup, Secretary-General of the TCS; Chen Ribiao, Consul General of China in Busan; Dudnik Oksana, Consul General of Russia in Busan; Jadamba, Consul of Mongolia in Busan; and Aslan Askar, Consul General of the Republic of Kazakhstan in Busan. Notably, in celebration of the 30th anniversary of NEAR's founding, former UN Ambassador Kim Sook delivered a commemorative speech on NEAR's status as the largest multilateral exchange platform in Northeast Asia, drawing significant interest from the attendees.
In the workshop that followed, the program started with a report on the 2025 major work achievements of the NEAR Secretariat. This was followed by reports on major events, including the 2026 NEAR High-level Working Committee, presentations by the Sub-committee on Traditional Medicine (Buryatia, Russia), the Sub-committee on Environment (Toyama Prefecture, Japan), and the Sub-committee on Education and Culture (Shimane Prefecture, Japan). Additionally, there were presentations on vocational education in Gansu Province, China; the promotion of the Year of Gyeongbuk Tourism by Gyeongsangbuk-do; sharing the vision for the MICE industry in Pohang City; and introductory and promotional presentations for Tuv Aimag, Mongolia, and the Karakalpakstan region, Uzbekistan.
Furthermore, this Member Workshop established a venue for one-on-one networking exchanges between member governments based on prior applications. A total of 12 member governments engaged in one-on-one communication across various fields where they desired exchange and cooperation, such as the recruitment of international students, economic trade, culture, and the arts. This served as an opportunity to once again confirm the utility of NEAR as a multilateral exchange platform that derives practical cooperation between member governments.
