In collaboration with the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) and the Asia-Pacific Research Center (APRC) at Hanyang University, the Korea Foundation organized the Korea-Russia Next Generation Policy Experts Forum in Moscow on February 1, 2018.

Under the themes of changes in the political situation in Northeast Asia and future-oriented R.O.K.-Russia relations, the forum was composed of three sessions on the North Korean nuclear missile program and inter-Korean relations; changes in Northeast Asia’s strategic geography; and bilateral relations between the Republic of Korea and Russia.

Led by Korea Foundation President Lee Sihyung, the Korean delegation was composed of nine young scholars from renowned universities and institutions in Korea. They included Director Eom Gu-ho of the Asia-Pacific Research Center at Hanyang University, and Professors Ko Jae-nam and Shin Beom-chul of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy. From the Russian side, distinguished individuals among the attendees included Andrey Kortunov, the Director-General of the RIAC, and Alexander Panov, Head of the Diplomacy Department at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University). In addition, younger Russian scholars in their 30s and 40s from institutions affiliated with the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs took also part in the forum, with the total number of Russian participants amounting to twenty-two. The Korean and Russian delegations engaged in active discussions with each other on issues related to the Korean peninsula, the development of R.O.K.-Russia relations, and ways to promote further exchanges between next-generation scholars and experts of the two countries.

In addition to attending the forum, the Korean delegation visited leading institutions in Moscow. They met with RIAC President Igor Ivanov, formerly Russia’s Foreign Minister and the country’s representative at the 2012 Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, which was also attended by former U.S. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and Harvard Professor Graham Allison. During the meeting, they discussed R.O.K.-Russia relations, the political situation on the Korean peninsula, and ways to promote future cooperation between the RIAC and the Korea Foundation. The Korean delegation also met with Evgeny P. Bazhanov, Rector of the Diplomatic Academy of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and Ivan Prostakov, Vice Rector of the National Research University Higher School of Economics, to exchange their views on various topics, including the development of Korean studies in Russia.

The Russian participants of the Next Generation Policy Experts Forum will visit Korea at a later stage to enhance their understanding about Korea-related issues discussed at the forum and strengthen the network with their Korean counterparts.