ASEAN, RoK to discuss measures to enhance partnership

Seoul – The 15th annual council meeting of the ASEAN-Korea Centre (AKC) will take place in Seoul on February 16-17, marking the first in-person gathering after three years between the two sides’ high-level officials to discuss measures to boost bilateral partnership.

AKC Secretary-General Kim Hae-yong said that Government officials from the Republic of Korea (RoK) and 10 ASEAN member states are to review a report on implementation results of the centre's 2022 budget, propose the budget for 2023, and exchange views on action programmes.

This year's meeting is of significance as the parties are making efforts to strengthen the prosperity and solidarity between ASEAN and the RoK in the context of promoting cooperation in the post-COVID-19 period.

In 2023, the AKC will carry out a variety of programmes with the aim to promote cooperation in innovation (including environment, society, governance) and e-mobility; explore new growth engines in the context of global post-pandemic economic transformation; strengthen information exchanges in culture and tourism; and boost mutual understanding as well as exchanges between young generations and experts and scholars.

The ASEAN-Korea Centre was set up on March 13, 2009 in Seoul with representatives of 10 ASEAN countries and the RoK. Its activities focus on cooperation in trade, investment, culture and tourism.

A Vietnamese delegation led by Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Doan Van Viet attended the 22nd ASEAN Plus Three Tourism Ministers Meeting in Indonesia’s Yogyakarta city on February 4.

Deputy Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Doan Van Viet has called on other ASEAN member countries to support and cooperate with each other in tourism development.

Vietnam will enjoy more windfalls in swelling its trade and investment cooperation with Australia and New Zealand via new amendments to a multilateral free trade deal between ASEAN and these two economies.