Malaysia-South Korea ties enter new phase

From Ravichandran D.J. Paul

SEOUL, Sept 13 (Bernama) -- Malaysia-South Korea relations that have grown in strength over the years have now entered an interesting phase as Malaysia's new government takes another look at the Look East Policy.

Charge d’Affaires at the Malaysian Embassy in South Korea Shaharuddin Onn noted that Malaysia viewed South Korea as an important partner not only at the bilateral level but also at the regional level, including as ASEAN + 3 dialogue partner.

In 2017, South Korea was the 13th largest source for Foreign Direct Investment and the sixth largest investor in the manufacturing sector in Malaysia, he told Bernama when met at the Malaysian Embassy here today.

As of December 2017, a total of 359 manufacturing projects with Korean participation worth US$18.5 billion have been implemented.

The projects and investments from South Korea have created 51,000 jobs for Malaysians so far, and from January to March 2018, three investment projects from South Korea worth US$41.2 million created more than 200 jobs.

Under Malaysia's new government that came into power after the 14th General Election in May this year, ties between both sides are set to become stronger. Moreover, there exist 20 government-to-government agreements and MoUs in various spheres that further bind both sides, he said.

Asked how South Koreans viewed the recent change in the Malaysian political landscape, Shaharuddin said they viewed the new government in a positive light and were confident that Malaysia would see greater days ahead.

On the other hand, he said the New Southern Policy rolled out by South Korean President Moon Jae-in is set to further augment the economic and diplomatic partnership between both sides.

It also serves as an excellent platform to propel South Korea-Malaysia relations to greater heights, he added.

Shaharuddin also noted that apart from diplomacy as well as trade and investments, people-to-people exchanges were also being given priority by both sides.

This year, under the Korea-Malaysia Teacher Exchange Programme, 10 language teachers from South Korea were sent to Malaysia and vice versa, he pointed out.

He said people-to-people exchanges were also seen through tourism where 307,642 Malaysians visited South Korea and 484,528 Koreans visited Malaysia. Also, more than 15,000 Koreans have participated in homestay programmes in Malaysia.

One of South Korea’s major draws for Malaysians is the K Wave, the global spread of South Korean culture since the 1990s that includes K- Pop. The K Wave has not only created sensational Korean music, serials and other entertainment content but also a host of products endorsed by Korean celebrities.

As of July 2017, about 1,400 Koreans have also made Malaysia their second home under the Malaysia My Second Home programme, he said, adding that this is another testament of Koreans’ favourable view of Malaysia.

Shaharuddin was met by a three-member Bernama team who are on a one-week visit to South Korea at the invitation of the Korea Cultural and Information Service (KOCIS).

-- BERNAMA