Our two nations widen mutual partnership

On October 3, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of the Republic of Korea.

As the Korean Ambassador to Indonesia, I wish on this day to extend a warm hand of friendship to the Indonesian people.

Since Indonesia and Korea opened official relations in 1966, both countries have maintained a very close and cooperative relationship in wide-ranging fields of politics, economy, culture and so forth. In particular, the recent years have witnessed that our bilateral economic partnership has made tremendous steps forward, amplifying constructive mutual cooperation and exchanges at various levels.

Indonesia and Korea have already exchanged state visits between the Heads of State in the early 1980s. In addition, bilateral fora at the ministerial level on diplomacy, energy and natural resources have become annual events. There has also been an increasing flow of two-way visits by the government officials as well as by the people in the private sector.

At ministerial-level cooperation, the two governments have concluded various agreements, such as the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement, the Aviation Agreement and the Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement.

These agreements proved very conducive not only to enhancing our economic relations but also to strengthening further the traditional ties of friendship between our two nations. In particular, the conclusion of the Aviation Agreement enabled our national carriers to make nonstop flights between Seoul and Jakarta, thus bridging the geographical gap between our two peoples.

In addition to such agreements and exchanges of visits that have obviously made Jakarta and Seoul closer, statistics demonstrate eloquently how much bilateral economic relations have been enhanced in recent years.

Two-way trade reached a record level of US$7.64 billion in 1997. Korea is now the fourth largest importer of Indonesian products, and Indonesia has become one of the 10 major trading partners for Korea. Bilateral trade has increased at an accelerated pace in view of the complementary nature and the substantial scale of the two economies.

Since the financial crisis facing both economies began last year, Korea and Indonesia are doing their best to find ways to curb the declining bilateral trade volume. For example, the two countries recently agreed to arrange countertrade between their private sectors on the Korean won and Indonesian rupiah currency basis.

It was about a decade ago when a small number of Korean business firms took root in Indonesia. Today, there are some 370 Korean corporations in operation.

Investment approval accorded to Korean entrepreneurs was $1.85 billion in 1994, $675 million in 1995, $1.23 billion in 1996 and $1.41 billion in 1997 respectively. Thus, the cumulative approval of Korean investments since 1967 amounts to $10.2 billion, on 479 projects, which ranks Korea as the eighth largest investor country in Indonesia.

Aside from trade and investment, the economic cooperation between the two countries has taken on a new dimension as Korea has provided Indonesia with $101.7 million from its Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) since 1992.

Furthermore, Korea has provided Indonesia with about $10 million in grant aid and technical cooperation from 1991 to 1998. During this period, Korea has invited 281 Indonesian trainees to Korea and has dispatched 23 Korean experts to Indonesia.

More than 12,000 Indonesians are now working in various industrial sectors under the Korean government's Technical Trainee Program. Because of their high-quality skills and good work-ethics, Indonesian workers in Korea are most popular among local entrepreneurs.

Since 1990, Korea has dispatched scores of Korean Overseas Volunteers to the Indonesian countryside. These volunteers have provided the Indonesian young generation with the opportunity to share development experiences and to further enhance mutual understanding and friendship between our younger generations. This program will continue over the years ahead.

Undoubtedly, a successful and durable economic cooperation with another country hinges on mutual understanding and spiritual partnership. This is why we need to redouble our efforts in order to have a better understanding of the cultural background, expectations and aspirations of other people, in as much as the scope of economic cooperation is broadened and deepened.

There continues to be a flurry of activity between our countries to promote the cultural exchanges of our two peoples. There are increasing exchanges of visits by traditional arts and music performance groups each year. Several Indonesian universities are accommodating Korean language courses in their curriculum. A radio program about Korea is being aired twice a week by the national station RRI. This program introduces Korean culture and language to Indonesia. Recently, as a step forward to more dynamic exchanges between Indonesian and Korean academics, Gadjah Mada University established a Center for Korean Studies and plans to install a Department for Korean Language.

In 1996, our Embassy began conducting annual essay contests about Korea. Last year, more than 1,200 Indonesian high school and college students participated from across the nation. Among them, 20 students were selected and we arranged a trip to Korea for all of them. Their trip to Korea provided them with a chance to experience Korean culture firsthand.

This year, we are again holding this essay contest in cooperation with the Department of Education and Culture of Indonesia, private television station RCTI and newspaper daily Kompas. The participants are expected to come from all senior high schools and universities across Indonesia.

The Korean people's affection and admiration for Indonesian cultural assets is manifested in the rapidly increasing number of Korean tourists flocking mostly to Jakarta, Yogyakarta and Bali. For example, tourist arrivals from Korea reached 224,000 in 1996, and 247,000 in 1997. These figures are now facing a sharp decline due to the economic crisis in Korea, but we are sure of their return to the previous levels in the near future. Personal contacts as such are fostering heart-to-heart communications between our two peoples and are consolidating the very foundation of our overall bilateral relations.

Given the worsening regional economic circumstances, further promotion of the cooperation between our two countries becomes all the more important, and its necessity is being felt more keenly thank ever before.

At the dawn of a new millennium, the prospects for our future destiny are bright. Both our nations are geared up for enormous potentials and we will achieve unprecedented development and prosperity, as soon as our economies have overcome the present economic difficulties.