Lim Byung-jin, Secretary-General of the North East Asia Regional Government Association (NEAR), met with Song Ki-do, President of the Korea Foundation (KF), at the ASEAN Culture House in Busan on Thursday, March 26, to exchange views on mutual cooperation measures.
Secretary-General Lim introduced the history of NEAR, the current status of member governments, and the organizational structure. He also highlighted recent trends in expanding outreach through the NEAR+2 policy, the activation of platforms such as sub-committees, the schedule for major events this year, and NEAR's role in multilateral exchange and cooperation among Northeast Asian local governments.
Furthermore, he expressed his hope to cooperate with the Korea Foundation, Korea's representative public diplomacy executive body, in projects organized by the Secretariat, such as the NEAR Training Program for Government Officials, the Young Leaders Forum, and the Youth Art Contest.
In response, President Song Ki-do stated that, to be honest, he had not been well-acquainted with NEAR, but through the detailed introduction, he gained an understanding of NEAR and recognized its important role as a multilateral cooperation platform among Northeast Asian local governments. He responded by suggesting that, following this meeting, both organizations should explore opportunities to cooperate in fields such as the Young Leaders Forum—targeting future generations—and the NEAR Training Program for Government Officials.
Meanwhile, the Korea Foundation (KF) was established in 1991 as a public diplomacy promotion agency under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and carries out various exchange and cooperation projects with foreign countries, including the promotion of global Korean studies, international cooperation networking, and the strengthening of cultural exchange and cooperation.
KF President Song Ki-do serve as a professor in the Department of Political Science and Diplomacy at Jeonbuk National University and as the Ambassador to Colombia before taking office as the 15th President of the KF in 2025, where he has been promoting various international cooperation activities. Additionally, Jang Ki-ho, Director of the Exchange Programs Department at the KF ASEAN Culture House, was also in attendance at this meeting.