At the beginning of his week-long trip to Korea, Dr. Thomas Schäfer met Jeong Se-Hyun, Executive Vice President of the National Unification Advisory Council (NUAC) in Seoul. They discussed political developments on the Korean Peninsula and the difficulties to restart dialogue and peaceful developments. Dr. Schäfer has been invited by Hanns-Seidel-Foundation Korea for a program of political dialogue and to participate in the Korean Global Peace Forum of the Ministry of Unification, a three-day forum which started on August 31.
Mr. Kim Young-Soo, Dr. Thomas Schäfer, Mr Hon. Lee Dalgon, and Dr. Bernhard Seliger met on August 30 and discussed parliamentary cooperation for inter-Korean exchanges and peace on the Korean Peninsula.
You can find more information on the meeting in the related newspaper articles (Korean only):
http://www.dhns.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=266274
http://www.fksm.co.kr/news/view.php?idx=54730
The Korea-US alliance is a cornerstone of any development on the Korean Peninsula. Therefore, on the occasion of his visit to Seoul on invitation by Hanns-Seidel-Foundation, Dr. Thomas Schäfer, also met with the acting head of the US Embassy, Chargé d’Affairs Chris del Corso to exchange views on the state of the Korean Peninsula, the analysis of the North Korean political system and possibilities to find new approaches to North Korea in the era of President Biden. Dr. Schäfer in his analysis stressed that while hardliners in North Korea were currently dominating policies of the country, there were moderate forces more interested in opening and economic exchanges, which could be encouraged by appropriate policy and dialogue offers.
As part of his visit to Korea organized by Hanns-Seidel-Foundation Korea, Dr. Schäfer was also invited to a friendly dinner with diplomats and analysts by H.E. Michael Reiffenstuel, German Ambassador to Seoul.
As part of his program in Seoul on occasion of the Korean Global Peace Forum, Dr. Thomas Schäfer, also had a number of political talks. He was accompanied by Dr. Bernhard Seliger and Kim Young-Soo of Hanns-Seidel-Foundation, which had invited Dr. Schäfer to Seoul. At the Ministry of Unification, Dr. Schäfer and the HSF team were received by Vice Minister of Unification Dr. Choi Young-Joon, who was interested in Schäfer’s analysis of the current state of politics in North Korea. Also, Dr. Schäfer had talks with Prof. Dr. Koh Yu-Hwan, President of the Korean Institute for National Unification (KINU), the largest unification-related think tank in Korea.
In early September, Dr. Thomas Schäfer, together with Dr. Bernhard Seliger and Kim Young-Soo visited Goseong County in Gangwon province, partner of Hanns-Seidel-Foundation cooperating for sustainable development in the border area since 2005. They met Goseong Mayor Ham Myeong Jun and discussed the current state of the Korean Peninsula and ways to revive North-South relations. Also, they visited the Unification Observatory and looked over to Haekumgang, where Ambassador Schäfer had been visited during his tenure from North Korea.
In the DMZ Museum, Dr. Schäfer, Dr. Seliger, and Mr. Kim had a meeting with Director Park Seong-Jeong and looked around the largest exhibition in the DMZ. Also, there was some exhibition on the German border during division, which was contributed by Hanns-Seidel-Foundation.