Professor Kim Woosang Appointed Ambassador to Australia Yonsei University Professor and Director of the Institute of East and West Studies Kim Woo-Sang was appointed as the Ambassador to Australia by President Lee Myung-bak on May 2. Professor Kim, who had been a professor of Foreign and Security policy, will bring his expertise to his new diplomatic duties. We met Professor Kim to ask him about his future plans as ambassador and his thought about Yonsei. * It is extremely rare for a current professor to be appointed as ambassador. How did your appointment come about? - I have known President Lee Myung-bak from about four or five years ago, when he was the mayor of Seoul. I continued to give him advice regarding foreign and security policy and studied the issue with him. I think this experience led him to give me a chance to go out into the field and put my knowledge to use. * What is your relationship with Australia? - During the last nomination race and presidential elections, I focused on what I called the “New Asia Foreign Policy” in my foreign and security policy plans. Australia is one of the main countries for this policy. The main point of the policy is that Korea must reach out to Asian countries such as Australia and India, in addition to nearby countries. * What will your focuses be as ambassador? - There are mainly three things: first, establishing a stable supply of energy from Australia’s plentiful energy resources to ensure Korean businesses benefit from it, second, learning from Australian policies of multi-culturalism, and finally, creating a relationship of international middle-powers and making the embassy an important factor in enhancing the influence of such nations. * Could you give us some more details? - Australia is a nation that is built on an entire continent, over 35 times the size of the Korean peninsula. Despite this fact, Australia’s low population of 22 million has caused it to be considered a low-profit market. However, Australia is a treasure-hold of resources. There are mines full of coal, zinc, uranium, nickel, and liquefied natural gas. The more our economy develops the more dependent we will become on energy. I believe that Australia may become an important source of this energy. The Middle East and Middle and South America are also rich in energy resources, but the supply is not always stable. Australia is a more developed area, so once we have established a route, we will be able to solve our energy problem. POSCO currently imports 70 percent of the coal for its iron mines from Australia. With the establishment of the Lee Myung-bak government, the importance of energy resources is being emphasized more and more. The first step we must take is to ensure a secure energy supply and have businesses use the embassy as a base for economic diplomacy and creating jobs. Even two or three decades ago, Australia embraced the White Australia policy and was against immigration. However, the low population concentration I mentioned earlier led to a lack of manpower. So they had no choice but to take immigrants. Now anthropologists say that Australia is the most multi-cultural nation among the developed countries. Multi-culturalism means a society that is open to all races and cultures and one that makes it possible for people from diverse backgrounds to live together in harmony. There is a considerable amount of interest in Korea about multi-culturalism and many scholars are saying that multi-culturalism will lead to a better future. In this regard, I believe Australia could be our role model. Lastly, Australia is interested in multinationalism. It is one of the wealthiest countries in the Southern hemisphere, but nobody pays attention to what they say. Australia is not considered a powerful nation. It is part of the British Commonwealth, so people think it is part of Europe, but actually it is closer to Asia. As a middle-power, Australia wants to influence global issues and lead multinational politics. They want to show their leadership regarding environmental issues like global warming and other general issues of human welfare, but it is not being recognized. Therefore, they wish to form a relationship with other nations in similar situations, such as Canada or Korea, and perform a major role in the global sphere. * You must be a bit worried being a scholar who lacks practical experience in diplomacy, I assume? - It is true that I have lectured about international relations but lack actual experience. I believe that imitating professional diplomats as ambassador is not the way for me to go. My goal is to do what only I can do as a scholar and not try to become what I am not. * How do you feel about leaving the university, even for a short period? - I am very sad to leave my students. I have always tried to make my lectures interesting and the students responded very well, so I am sorry to leave so suddenly. However, I believe that my experience as a diplomat in the next two or three years will help me enhance my lectures when I return. This is a big consolation. I expect that the experience and knowledge I gather over this period will make me a better professor. *Does this mean that we can expect academic exchange between Korean and Australian scholars? - As I mentioned before, Australia is in the position to influence global agenda and lead the discussion as a middle-power. Despite this fact, the interest Korean scholars have shown regarding Australia is sadly rather small. Consequently, the field of Australian Studies is very poorly developed. I think this is a good chance for Yonsei University to lead Korean academia into the unexplored territory of Australian Studies. Yonsei has always been a leader in globalization, and I will do my best to help Yonsei enter the Southern hemisphere. Recently, I was able to mediate a meeting between our university president and the vice-chancellor of Australia National University. One of the main issues during this meeting was the opening of a Korean Studies Center at ANU. POSCO has two partner-firms in Australia, and they are planning to donate 2.5 million dollars each for a sum of 5 million dollars for the Korean Studies Center. Not only will Yonsei be able to play a role in the opening of this Center, but also raised was the possibility of working with ANU to further Australian Studies at Yonsei. * Do you have any special words for Yonseians? - The students studying at Yonsei have the potential to become leaders of the future. Therefore, it is important to compete with each other and strive to excel, but just as important to learn to help others and care for and serve your community. Only then will our students become the true leaders of Korean society and even the world. Nurturing a good heart is just as important as accumulating information and technology. When our Yonseians become such leaders, our society will become more peaceful and prosperous