A Busy Start to 2013

[성김 대사]

I know I usually stick to one topic in each blog post, but so much has happened in last couple of weeks that I wanted to tell you about it all!

This year is quite an important one as 2013 marks the 60^th anniversary since South Korea and the U.S. signed the mutual defense treaty.  To honor the occasion I hosted a special 60^th Anniversary U.S.-Korea Alliance dinner at my residence.  We brought together key players such as U.S. Forces Korea Commander General James Thurman, South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Jung Seung-Jo, Combined Forces Command Deputy Commander General Kwon Oh-Sung, and close colleagues from Foreign and Defense Ministries.  This was a good opportunity for General Thurman and I to thank our South Korean partners for all their contributions to the alliance over the years and to pledge close cooperation as we work to strengthen our partnership. 

With U.S. Forces Korea Commander General Thurman, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman General Jung Seung-Jo and Combined Forces Command Deputy Commander General Kwon Oh-Sung

I also wanted to thank General Thurman and U.S. Forces Korea.  The Embassy and U.S. Forces Korea have the best relations ever and this close partnership makes us much more effective in managing the alliance.  

Celebrating 60 years of partnership and shared prosperity was just too good to keep to ourselves, so I made it as public as possible.  Not too long after the dinner we unveiled a wonderful, 18-meter banner that is now hanging on the front of the Embassy.  This proud display lets everyone know just how special this year is. 

But honestly, this is just the beginning.  All year the Embassy will be organizing great events around this momentous anniversary.  Keep following us on Facebook and Twitter to hear about our latest plans.

From Gwanghwamun Square, you can catch a great view of our new banner!

And you can see just how important this year will be, as only three weeks into the New Year we have already welcomed a number of important visitors.  Their visits truly demonstrate the importance of U.S.-Korea relations.  We expect many more high-level visitors, but so far we have hosted a Congressional delegation that included Representatives Mike Honda from California, James Sensenbrenner from Wisconsin, Eddie Bernice Johnson from Texas and Madeleine Bordallo from Guam; Assistant Secretary of State Kurt Campbell also made a trip with Assistant Secretary of Defense Mark Lippert and National Security Council Senior Director for Asian Affairs Daniel Russel. 

This week we welcome a delegation headed by Special Representative for North Korea Policy Glyn Davies.  They are all coming because together we understand the importance of the U.S.-Korea relationship as well as Korea’s prominence on the world stage.  These visits keep us very busy at the Embassy, but they are so important to keeping our relationship strong. 

Can you name all these high-level visitors who are keeping us busy?

A number of other interesting events took place over the past three weeks.  I was proud to see the Embassy host its seventh annual Women’s Leadership Seminar for more than 50 emerging women leaders.  I was not invited, but my wife was!  Other presenters included Deputy Chief of Mission Leslie Bassett and such inspirational leaders as Arirang TV CEO Sohn Jie-ae.  Of course, now that Korea is about to inaugurate its first female President, we expect the country will play an even more important role in women’s upward mobility.   

Korean women leading the way

Finally, we had a great economic event with the launch of the brand-new GM Cadillac ATS.  As someone who rides around town in a Cadillac DTS, and after taking the Cadillac CTS for a spin recently at GM’s Cheongna Proving Grounds in Incheon, I was particularly excited to see the new ATS. 

Good luck with the ATS, Cadillac!

GM Korea’s story is a great example of our two countries’ shared success.  Ten years after it began operations, GM Korea now employs 17,000 people and invests more than $900 million per year in Korea.  GM Korea is the top developer of GM’s global compact vehicles and exports the Korean-built Chevrolet Spark to the United States.  It is truly a win-win.  There are many more examples of our shared prosperity and we will be highlighting them throughout this year as we mark another important milestone in our relations -- the 60^th anniversary of the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea. 

As you can see, we are off to a very busy start for 2013!  But amid this flurry of activity, I always try to make time for my blogs so that I can hear from you in the comments.  How has 2013 treated you so far?