International Academic Conference Held to Commemorate the 140th Anniversary of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Korea and Russia

The Russian Studies Institute (Director: Pyo Sang-yong) held an international academic conference on the topic of “140th Anniversary of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Korea and Russia: History of Korea-Russia Exchanges and New Challenges.”

In his welcoming speech, Director Pyo Sang-yong emphasized, “This conference is an example of public diplomacy between Korea and Russia, and it is necessary to hold more academic conferences between Korea and Russia in the future.” In his congratulatory speech that followed, Vice President Kim Chun-sik stated, “If Korea and Russia do their best, we will be able to overcome the current difficulties between the two countries and develop cooperative relations for the next 140 years.” In addition, Russian Ambassador to Korea Georgi Zinoviev emphasized in his congratulatory speech, “Since the signing of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Korea and Russia in 1884, Russia has played a neutral and constructive role on the Korean Peninsula. However, after Japan took control of the Korean Peninsula, the Japanese government generally evaluated Russia negatively, and this Russophobic perspective has come to be viewed objectively since Korean historians accessed Russian historical records after the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Russia in 1990.” He continued, “Given that Russia’s Victory Day is connected to the liberation of the Korean Peninsula, I hope that there will be objective and scientific academic discussions on the 80th anniversary of Victory Day next year and Korea’s liberation.” In the panel, Consul General of the Russian Federation Oksana Dudnik presented the history of Russian diplomacy, which began with the relocation of the Russian Empire’s vice consulate from Masan to Busan in the early 20th century, and Archbishop Feofan Kim of the Russian Orthodox Church presented the history of the Russian Orthodox Church’s missionary activities on the Korean Peninsula. The first session was titled “The History and Present of the Agreement on Mutual Aid, Friendship, and Commerce between Korea and Russia,” the second session was titled “Traces of Russian Culture in Korea,” and the third roundtable was titled “The History and Tasks of the 30 Years of Korea-Russia Diplomatic Relations.” This international academic conference was very meaningful in that it provided an opportunity to insightfully interpret the historical context of Korea-Russia diplomatic relations and to further expand academic exchange events with a public diplomacy nature in Korea-Russia exchanges.