On Wednesday, September 30, a ceremony to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Spain and the Republic of Korea took place at the Casino of Madrid.
To commemorate this important event, the book "Spain and Korea. Towards a New Strategic Partnership", edited by Mr. Alvaro Hidalgo and Mr. Alfonso Ojeda. The presentation of the book was made by His Excellency the Ambassador of the Republic of Korea, Mr. Hong-jo Chun, who briefly described the content of the book, pointing out that it is divided into three parts: first, the evolution and evaluation of the 70 years of relations between Spain and Korea and the perspectives for the future; second, the economic relations between the two countries; and finally, the cultural relations and human exchanges between Spain and Korea. It is a very valuable text both for its content and for the level of the people who contributed to its writings. Of the 30 articles it contains, 15 were written by Korean authors and 15 by Spanish authors. The book was prefaced by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of both countries and among the authors of the articles are the former Prime Minister, Mr. José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, the former Secretary General of the UN, Mr. Ban Ki-moon, the former Rector of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies, Mr. Park Chul, the President of the Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr. Park Yongmaan, the President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Mr. José Luis Bonet Ferrer. Mr. Alvaro Hidalgo, President of the Spanish Center for Korean Research and one of the book's editors, also took the floor.
At the 70th anniversary commemoration ceremony, the former Prime Minister, Mr. José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero, was present. In his speech, he expressed his great admiration for Korea and highlighted the fact that in the 7 decades of diplomatic relations there has never been any conflict between the two countries, and acknowledged that it is thanks to Korea that Spain enjoys the status of permanent guest at the G20. The Ambassador was accompanied at the ceremony by, among others, the Secretary of State for Trade, Ms. Xiana Méndez, the Secretary General for Industry and SMEs, Mr. Raúl Blanco, the Director General for North America, Eastern Europe, Asia and the Pacific of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, Ms. Ana María Salomon, and the President of the Spain-Korea Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Javier Cremades.
Also participating in the event through video conferences were the Minister of Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, Ms. Arancha González Laya; the former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Josep Piqué, and the President of the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, Mr. José Luis Bonet.
