The Republic of Korea (ROK)-G7 Cooperation Forum in Rome

Ambassador Nelli Feroci President of IAI

Rome [ENA] In an increasingly polarized world and with less and less certainty in the economic field, alliances between countries that share the same principles are playing a crucial role in defining foreign policy priorities. Broadening horizons by going beyond regional and transatlantic alliances will therefore be fundamental. The G7 is an informal dialogue forum that brings together seven highly industrialized countries

The panelists

(Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Italy, the United Kingdom, the United States, plus the European Union) united by a series of common principles and values: freedom and democracy, rule of law, respect for human rights. The Istituto Affari Internazionali, with the support and funding of the Korea Foundation, organized the "ROK-G7 Cooperation Forum" on May 7th. The opening remarks were by the President of IAI Ambassador Ferdinando Nelli Feroci and by the President of Korea Foundation Ambassador Gheewhan Kim. The forum included the participation of former officials and experts from academia, think tanks, and industry from South Korea, alongside their counterparts from G7 countries and Australia.

G7 Cooperation Forum in Rome

The forum aimed to explore new opportunities for collaboration among the Republic of Korea, G7 countries, and Australia, focusing on areas such as traditional security, non-traditional and multidimensional security, and cooperation in the field of science and technology. The first two sessions, "ROK-G7 Convergences on International Security" and "ROK-G7 Cooperation on Science and Technology," have been opened to the public. The third and final session, "G7 Plus Multidimensional Security Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific," has been held behind closed doors and conducted under the Chatham House Rule.

South Korea eyes joining G7, but it is facing obstacles and to join this elite group will depend on ability to address both domestic and global challenges as its China ties. In a bilateral relation plagued by history and identity issues Tokyo achieved a sort of diplomatic revolution with Yoon’s own visit to Japan. Moreover, Kishida and Yoon joined US President Joe Biden in a historical trilateral meeting at Camp David, which suggested a potential shift from the traditional “hub and spoke” system of US alliances in the Asia-Pacific to a new network featuring increasing coordination among partners – a development that, in turn, inevitably raises the spectre of an “Asian NATO”, one of Beijing’s bêtes noires.