By UN Journal Kayla Lee UN Secretary-General António Guterres has deplored a deadly weekend attack on a Gaza school-turned-shelter, his Office said on Aug. 12. “The Secretary-General condemns the continued loss of life in Gaza, including women and children, as we witness yet another devastating strike by Israel on the Al-Taba’een school in Gaza City, sheltering hundreds of displaced Palestinians families, with scores of fatalities, amidst continued horror, displacement, and suffering in Gaza,” said UN Deputy Spokesperson Farhan Haq. The incident occurred on Aug. 3 and at least 100 people were
UNJournal Kayla Lee | President Yoon Suk-yeol sent congratulatory telegeams to each of the 14 South Korean athletes who have won medals over the past three days at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. In his congratulations to Ban Hyo-jin, the youngest member of the Korean shooting team to win a gold medal in the women's 10-meter air rifle, the President said, “The entire nation held its breath during the last single shot of the youngest member of the Korean Olympic team in Paris and cheered when she won by 0.1 points.” He praised Ban's focus and boldness in winning Korea's 100th gold me
UNJournal Kayla Lee | Many Korean legends and myths are closely linked to nature. One of the most notable is the 'Manbyeonghwajodo' (萬病花朝圖). As its name suggests, this unique flower is said to have the mystical ability to cure all ailments, and the legends and stories surrounding it have been passed down through the ages. Manbyeonghwajodo is a painting that depicts the characteristic elements of the flower in a stylized manner, rather than in a realistic form. Each canvas is labeled with the names of flowers, such as Hangyuoknyeo Jikgeumhwa, Hongdohwa, Dongjeonghosangbuyonghwa, Yeongjuhwa, Okd
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul held a Foreign Ministerial Meeting with Canadian Foreign Minister Mélanie Joly in Seoul to exchange views on bilateral relations, regional and global developments on July 18. The two ministers noted that recent exchanges and communications between the leaders and ministers of the two countries demonstrate the importance that both sides attach to the Korea-Canada relationship, and adopted the Korea-Canada Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Action Plan as a follow-up to the May 2023 Korea-Canada Summit. The Action Plan is designed
By UN Journal Kayla Lee National Security Adviser Jang Ho-jin met with visiting New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters at the Yongsan Office of the President in Seoul on July 15, the presidential office said. Jang and Peters agreed that the two countries, as similarly positioned countries in the Indo-Pacific region, should work together to safeguard peace, stability and a rules-based order in the region. Jang thanked New Zealand in particular for its role as chair of the Indo-Pacific Four (IP4) Summit, which played an important role in issuing a joint statement o
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul held a luncheon meeting with New Zealand Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Winston Peters on July 15 to exchange views on issues of common interest, including high-level exchanges, practical cooperation, including the economy, and the Korean Peninsula and key regional issues. Cho noted that New Zealand is a longtime ally that participated in the Korean War, and that the two countries have maintained close communication and cooperation as similarly situated countries with shared values. In response, Deputy Prime Minister Peters empha
UNJournal Jon Lee | President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee visited the Pacific National Cemetery in Honolulu, Hawaii, on July 8. The cemetery was established in 1949 and is home to veterans of World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Upon arriving at the cemetery, the President and First Lady were led by James Horton, Director of the Pacific National Cemetery, to lay a wreath and honor the U.S. veterans interred at the cemetery. After laying a wreath, they greeted and thanked the six Korean War veterans in attendance. The President and First Lady then visited the grave o
By UN Journal Kayla Lee If Wittgenstein, a master of modern philosophy, once said, "The ultimate goal of philosophy is to show the fly the way out of the bottle," then the ultimate goal of art would be described as "to make the fly in the bottle dance, sing, and dream, so that it can overcome the gravity of reality." In other words, art, with its unique imagination and creativity, is the pursuit of self-reflection, which includes not only philosophy but also the so-called literary periods of literature, history, and the humanities, and should be aimed at eternity while seeing the limits of hum
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yul received the new Ambassador of Japan to Korea Koichi Mizushima and exchanged views on bilateral relations on July 5. Minister Cho welcomed Ambassador Mizushima's appointment at a time when bilateral relations between Japan and South Korea, which are of vital national security and national interest, are developing on the basis of deep trust between the two leaders. Cho also stressed that both sides should wisely manage bilateral issues in a mutually respectful and supportive manner in order to consolidate the positive trend of bila
By UN Journal Kayla Lee To commemorate the 32nd anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Belarus, the Diplomatic Journal and the UN Journal co-hosted a cultural exchange exhibition with the Embassy of Belarus in Seoul from July 3-8 at the Maru Art Center in Insa-dong, Seoul. The Korea-Belarus cultural exchange exhibition featured 11 works by Belarusian color magician Marc Chagall, 20 beautiful tourist photographs of Belarus, and 37 works by Korean Minwha (folk painting) artists. More than 60 foreign ambassadors, domestic artists and other guests, including Amb
UNJournal | Starting on July 1, Korea will assume the chairmanship of the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) for one year, with Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang In-sun serving as Chair, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on June 27. Critical minerals are indispensable for high-tech industries such as semiconductors, batteries, and electric vehicles, which are pivotal to Korea's economic prosperity and essential for the global clean energy transition for net-zero targets. However, the concentration of critical mineral reserves and processing facilities in a limited number of countries,
UNJournal Kayla Lee | The Diplomatic Journal and the UN Journal are publishing a series of articles on folk paintings in both Korean and English to introduce Korean folk paintings to the world. –Ed. 渇忠輔國心無貳 (Galchungbogooksimmui) "A heart that is loyal and wants to serve the country has no two minds." This means that a person who is willing to serve the country is pure in heart and has no other thoughts. It shows that loyalty to the country is unwavering. Loyalty is a state of mind that transcends personal interests and is solely dedicated to the country. It means that you don't care about you
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul hosted a luncheon for diplomatic corps members from countries that participated in the Korean War in Daegu, Korea, to commemorate the 74th anniversary of the Korean War on June 25. The luncheon was organized to honor the sacrifices and hard work of the 22 participating countries and more than 2 million veterans who contributed to the defense of Korea's freedom and democracy. Military support countries are the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Turkiye, Australia, Greece, Philippines, Thailand, Ethiopia, Netherlands, Colombia, New Zealand
By UN Journal Kayla Lee The '2024 Int’l Venice Art Exhibition' will be held at Palazzo Albrizzi-Capello, a 17th-century Renaissance imperial palace and a famous historical landmark in central Venice, on July 27~Aug. 19. The theme of this exhibition emphasizes the concept of 'crossover', that is, beyond the constraints of concepts, regions, eras and creative media, bringing new thoughts and perspectives to humanity. The outstanding artists participating in the exhibition come from all over the world. Overcoming barriers of region, language, and age, we meet in Venice and share the spark of crea
By UN Journal Kayla Lee Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul met with Eurasia Group Chairman Ian Bremmer on June 21, during his visit to New York, and exchanged views on U.S.-China relations, cybersecurity, and AI cooperation. Minister Cho and Chairman Bremmer exchanged views on various ways to promote mutual strategic stability on the economic and security fronts amid the growing strategic competition between the U.S. and China, and agreed on the importance of maintaining continuous public engagement and communication. The two sides also discussed a wide range of issues, including U.S.-ROK, China-ROK