To consolidate bilateral relations including economic cooperations between Korea & Belgium, Belgium King Philippe and Queen Mathilde visit Seoul on March, next year, according to the Embassy of Belgium.

Such a fact was disclosed by Belgium Amb. Peter Lescouhier who hosted the 2018 Belgium King's Day diplomatic reception in a downhotel Seoul on Nov. 15th evening.

Touching upon the fact that Princess Astrid of Belgium along with a delegation of 250 or so economic experts who accompanied her who visited Korea on June, last year promoted economic cooperation one notch higher, Lescouhier said that The Embassy of Belgium will not spare any assistances so that the two countries will continue to develop our economic strengths across chemistry, medicine and information technology etc., to name just a few.

As a good example of close cooperations between the two countries among others, Amb. Lescouhier named Songdo Ghent University which produced its graduates for the first time since its campus opening 4 years ago in Songdo, Incheon, Republic of Korea. Ghent University Global Campus offers degrees and conducts world class research in environmental technology, food technology and molecular biotechnology. All students spend one semester in Ghent, Belgium, the home town of their alma mater, he added.

For reference of our readers, the NDNnews inserts an excerpt of Belgium Amb. Peter Lescouhier's contribution article which was inserted into the Seoulcity magazine Nov. issue. -Ed.

By H.E. Peter Lescouhier, Belgium Amb. to the Republic of Korea

While the Belgian National Day is on 21 July, on 15 November we celebrate King’s Day, the name day

of LeopoldI, the first King of the Belgians. This celebration provides a good opportunity to highlight

the excellent relations that exist between the Republic of Korea and the Kingdom of Belgium.

Belgium and Korea have friendly relations for more than a century, with the first Belgian Representation in Seoul opening in 1901. At the start of the Korean war, Belgian volunteers promptly answered the United Nations call for support. More than 3000 Belgian soldiers fought side by side with the South Koreans under the umbrella of the United Nations Command (UNC) and 101 of them gave their life for the defense of the Republic of Korea. In the late 1950’s several Belgian priests moved to Korea to support the local communities in rebuilding the damaged country. One of them, Didier t’Serstevens, locally known as Ji Jung-hwan, introduced cheese production in Korea. In 2016 he obtained Korean citizenship and the factory he opened in 1967 in Imsil continues to produce cheese until this day.

Belgium and Korea meet regularly on the highest level. Bilateral meetings between government ministers and officials aim to strengthen mutual cooperation. In 2017 an economic mission to Korea with over 100 Belgian companies, presided by Princess Astrid and accompanied by 5 ministers, proved a great success. President Moon recently had a conversation with HM King Philippe during his stay in Brussels for the ASEM Summit. Belgium and Korea are like-minded countries with respect to many multilateral issues and work closely together in international fora, be it in New York, Geneva, or elsewhere.

Academic cooperation is ever increasing. More and more Belgian students find their way to Korean universities, and vice versa. Moreover, Ghent University is the first European university to have established a Global Campus in Songdo, Incheon. Ghent University Global Campus offers degrees and conducts world class research in environmental technology, food technology and molecular biotechnology. All students spend one semester in Ghent, Belgium, the home town of their alma mater.

On the culture front, Korean K-pop and drama are gaining ground in Belgium, and more and more Belgian artists come to Korea to perform on stage. Sioen, who’s song ‘cruisin’ conquered Korean charts, is the most famous one and is expanding rapidly his fan base in Korea. French being one of the two official languages in Belgium, the Belgian Embassy in Korea actively participates in the activities of the Francophonie in Korea.

As illustrated above, the relationship between the Kingdom of Belgium and the Republic of Korea is a very rich one. A relationship with strong roots in the past, diversified at present, and without doubt thriving even more in the years to come.