The “2023 Science and Technology Diplomacy Forum” hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and organized by KISTEP was held on Tuesday, December 19, 2023 at JW Marriott Hotel Grand Ballroom. The forum was co-hosted by the Ministry of Science and ICT and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the first time since the first forum in 2021 with the theme of “Science and technology cooperation and diplomatic direction to become a world-leading first mover and global hub country”, and attended by around 250 people from industries, academia and research institutes.

The forum began with opening remarks by Sung-kyung Cho, First Vice Minister of Science and ICT, and Jae-kwon Kang, Economic and Diplomacy Coordinator of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, followed by a congratulatory address by National Assembly member Cheol-soo Ahn, a welcoming address by KISTEP President Byung-Seon Jeong, and a keynote speech by Ambassador for Science and Technology Cooperation Seong-cheol Shin. It consisted of presentations by Nam-joon Cho, Dean of Industry at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, and Sang-bae Kim, Professor of Political Science and Diplomacy at Seoul National University, and an expert panel discussion.

Seong-kyung Cho, First Vice Minister of  Science and ICT, said, “The Science and Technology Diplomacy Forum is an expression of our will and a promise of action to creatively lead international cooperation in S&T through the combination of practical S&T and diplomacy,” adding, “S&T diplomacy will play a pivotal role in solving global problems that transcend national borders and responding to international standards and regulations.”

Jae-kwon Kang, Economic and Diplomatic Coordinator at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, “The international community is competing in parallel with establishing international governance, establishing norms, and developing innovative technologies related to core strategic technologies directly related to national security.” He added, “Science, technology and innovation are not only the core of national competitiveness, but also herald the reorganization of the global order. In this era of technological hegemony, in order for us to leap forward as a global pivotal nation, we need not only strategic responses to key fields, but also S&T diplomacy strategies that can contribute to the international community in line with our national standing.”

Cheol-soo Ahn, a member of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and Unification, suggested in his congratulatory speech, “The only strategy for Korea to survive in the war for technological hegemony is to secure cutting-edge S&T competitiveness that powerful countries such as the United States and China are focusing on as necessary.” Regarding the U.S. State Department's hiring of 50 new data scientists at last year's audit of the U.S. government, he said, "It was surprising that by recruiting scientists, they were making diplomatic decisions based on big data analysis and diplomacy based on data evidence." “In the past, S&T and diplomacy and security existed separately, but now we are seeing a merger of the two. “Korea must not only secure unrivaled S&T capabilities, but also strive to develop its S&T diplomatic capabilities and pursue integrated and linked diplomatic strategies based on this,” he emphasized.

KISTEP President Byung-Seon Jeong said, “The fields of quantum, nuclear energy, space, and advanced biotechnology must reach a consensus not only from an S&T perspective, but also from a diplomatic perspective,” he emphasized. “I am glad that we have an opportunity to take a leap forward as a world-leading first mover. As an organization that supports S&T diplomacy, we have worked hard to ensure smooth communication, and this forum jointly held by both ministries seems to be bearing fruit,” he said. He concluded his opening remarks by saying, “We will faithfully reflect the collected wisdom and alternatives and actively support them so that they can be adopted as the government’s agenda.”

Seong-cheol Shin, Ambassador for Science and Technology Cooperation, gave a keynote speech on the topic of “Science and Technology Diplomacy Strategy in the 21C Technological Hegemony Era.” He emphasized the 3C* strategy, saying, “Korea, which has achieved rapid economic growth based on S&T, needs an engine to take another leap forward in the era of technological hegemony in the 21st century.” He added that “European countries such as Switzerland, Sweden, and Austria are countries in basic science with many Nobel Prize winners, so it would be good to promote joint research with them. Nurturing excellent human resources in science and engineering from developing countries at Korea's major universities is also an opportunity to expand our economic territory.” He suggested the importance of identifying the resource status of foreign and overseas scientific engineers, training professional science diplomats, upgrading the technological alliance with the United States, strengthening basic science cooperation with European scientific powers, and nurturing excellent human resources in science and engineering from developing countries.

*Enhancing national competitiveness based on S&T, complementary collaboration with developed countries, and contributing to the development of developing countries and the prosperity of human society

Namjoon  Cho, Director of the Transformation Economy Research Institute at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, gave a presentation on the topic of “Measures to strengthen R&D openness to become a world leading first mover.” He emphasized that “Korea needs to break away from the fast follower strategy of the past and transition to a first mover strategy, and the moment it recognizes diversity, it can become a first mover.” In particular, using Singapore's Nanyang Technological University's global cooperation in the research industry with foreign research institutes and companies (Rolls-Royce, Hewlett-Packard, etc.) as an example, he stated that Korea should also expand the openness of R&D by linking university research institutes with overseas research institutes and collaborating with global companies.

Sang-bae Kim, a professor at Seoul National University, gave a presentation on “Science and Technology Diplomacy Strategic Direction to Strengthen National Security and Raise National Prestige in the Era of Global Technological Hegemony”, arguing that S&T diplomacy is a strategy for our survival that goes beyond international cooperation, and that the concept of security has recently become related to S&T. He emphasized that there is a need to upgrade the existing S&T diplomacy, as it is becoming more important, and that it needs to be promoted from a more comprehensive and complex perspective. Explaining that the existing S&T diplomacy paradigm needs to be converted to a form of managing geopolitical risks, he presented a diversification strategy in terms of brokerage, solidarity, and normative diplomacy based on Korea’s S&T platform capabilities as a middle power diplomatic strategy.

The panel discussion was chaired by Young-ja Bae, professor of political science and diplomacy at Konkuk University, and participants including Seong-gyu Kim, international cooperation director at the Ministry of Science and ICT, Hyun-soo Yoon, director of the Climate and Environment Science Diplomacy Bureau at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Seok-jun Kwon, professor of chemical engineering at Sungkyunkwan University, Tae-young Yoon, professor of life sciences at Seoul National University, Seung-joo Lee, professor of political science and international studies at Chung-Ang University, and Young-jin Jeong, professor of National Defense University had an in-depth discussion. Experts in economic security, space, semiconductors, and biotechnology participated and made in-depth suggestions on the direction of S&T diplomacy in each field and the role of the government. They announced that they will work to ensure that the opinions presented at the forum are actually reflected in future policies.