제주평화연구원

 

HAN Intaek Jeju Peace Institute

As an island of world peace, Jeju strives to promote peace and cooperation. One important way for Jeju to achieve its goal is by serving as a venue for meetings and conferences aimed at promoting peace and cooperation. Jeju is a visa-free island accessible by direct flights from major cities in Northeast Asia. Its accessibility and natural beauty make Jeju a preferred site for international conferences and meetings.

Not surprisingly, Jeju has been the venue for bilateral, trilateral and multilateral summit meetings. One of the most historic summit meetings in South Korea’s history took place in Jeju about 30 years ago. When the Cold War was drawing to a close, then newly elected President of South Korea Roh Tae-woo introduced “Nordpolitik.” Under the new doctrine, South Korea would reach out to countries it had previously considered enemies. It would seek to normalize diplomatic relations with the Soviet and China. The ultimate target was, of course, North Korea. South Korea’s efforts paid off. In September 1990, South Korea and the Soviet normalized their relations. The following year, then Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev was mindful of North Korea, and suggested that the summit be held away from Seoul and away from North Korea. As a result, Jeju was chosen. The Roh-Gorbachev summit not only contributed to ending the Cold War, it also started a community-wide movement to turn Jeju into an “island of peace.” Since then, summit meetings have been taking place in Jeju. In April 1996, former President Kim Young-sam and former U.S. President Bill Clinton had a summit in Jeju, followed by a summit between former President Kim and then Japanese Prime Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto. China’s former President Jiang Zemin also visited Jeju and famously played the piano there. Among summit meetings held in Jeju are the Korea-China-Japan summit in 2010 and the Korea-ASEAN special summits in 2009. The list will continue to grow in the future. Jeju has been also the venue for one of the most successful disarmament and non-proliferation dialogues in the region. Since 2002, the Government of the Republic of Korea and the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA), through its Regional Center for Peace and Disarmament in Asia and the Pacific (UNRCPD) have been holding the annual Joint Conference on Disarmament and Non-proliferation Issues in Jeju. Attended by representatives from Governments and intergovernmental organizations, as well as policy institutes, academia and non-governmental organizations, the annual Conference has become an important forum for candid and constructive exchanges of views among participants on timely challenges and potential solutions to key disarmament, arms-control and security issues. In particular, it addresses disarmament and non-proliferation concerns at the regional level. Every spring, thousands of people gather in Jeju to talk about peace and prosperity. This annual gathering, the Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity, began in 2001 and aims to promote peace through dialogue and achieve prosperity through cooperation. The Jeju Forum is attended by some of the biggest names in Asia and around the world, including former and current heads of state, CEOs of global conglomerates, and renowned scholars. But it is also a gathering for everyone and anyone who cares about peace. In essence, the Jeju Forum continues and expands the tradition of summit meetings to discuss peace among friends and former adversaries. The Jeju Peace Institute organizes the Jeju Forum. In 2011, Jeju was also the venue for the 8th Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum. First held in Cairo, Egypt in 2003, the annual Forum brings together influential leaders and brilliant minds from Korea and the Middle East for exchange of ideas and sharing of knowledge. The Jeju Peace Institute organized the 8th Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum with the Emirates Center for Strategic Studies and Research. As the Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum is held in South Korea and the Middle East on a rotating basis, subsequent Forums were held in different cities in the Middle East, such as Abu Dhabi, Amman, and Kuwait City. While the venues and Arab co-organizers have changed, the Jeju Peace Institute has remained a Korean organizer of the Forum since 2011. Just last month, the Jeju Peace Institute successfully completed the 12th Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum in Kuwait, in cooperation with the Korea-Arab Society and the Diplomatic Center for Strategic Studies, Kuwait. The Middle East is where the world's oldest cultures and civilizations emerged. Today, however, it is a region deeply involved in conflict. By sharing knowledge and experience to promote peace and cooperation at the Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum, Koreans and Arabs are working together for a better future. By organizing the Korea-Middle East Cooperation Forum, the Jeju Peace Institute hopes to contribute to peace and cooperation in the Middle East in a small way.