The Korea Foundation and the Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA) recently co-organized the “KF Oceania Next Generation Policy Experts Study Tour to Korea,” welcoming a delegation of 11 policy experts from Oceania to Korea from March 19 to 23. Visiting Korea’s leading governmental organizations and policy institutes, the Oceanian policy experts engaged in passionate discussions covering policy, security and unification issues, and learned more about Korean society.

The delegation was composed of 11 Australian experts in East Asian affairs and international relations, with the group eager to conduct further Korea-related research and expand cooperative networks with their Korean counterparts.

Participants of the KF-Oceania Next Generation Policy Experts Study Tour to Korea are grouped according to the year in which they first attend the Forum program. The policy experts participate in a gathering held in their country or region in the first year of the program, and come to Korea to visit government ministries and relevant organizations and expand cooperative networks in the second year of the program. The Australian delegation to Korea this year also participated in a policy expert forum in Canberra, Australia in 2017, along with their Korean counterparts.

During their stay in Korea, the policy experts visited the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Unification and the Ministry of National Defense, where they were briefed on the South Korean government’s unification policy, defense policy, the R.O.K.-U.S. alliance, and other relevant issues. They also attended roundtable meetings at the Korean National Diplomatic Academy and the Asan Institute for Policy Studies to conduct in-depth discussion on foreign affairs and security issues, inter-Korean relations, and the R.O.K.-U.S. alliance. In addition, they were provided with a first-hand opportunity to experience Korean society and culture through visits to the DMZ, Gyeongbok Palace, the War Memorial of Korea and Namsangol Hanok Village.

John Goodland, President of the Western Australia Branch of the AIIA and head of the delegation, said the study tour had enabled the participants to deepen their understanding of the development of South Korean society, unification and the political situation in East Asia.

Through the provision of this and other such programs, the Korea Foundation strives to help young scholars of international relations abroad enhance their understanding of the South Korean perspective on Northeast Asian foreign affairs and security issues.