Romania and the Republic of Korea: A strategic partnership that will grow stronger in the post-pandemic era

The relationship between Romania and South Korea is strong and dynamic, beginning with the first contacts between the two peoples, which started to discover each other even before the formal establishment of diplomatic relations.

Since culture and sport are usually the best ambassadors, the foundation of the Romanian language department by Hankuk University of Foreign Studies in 1987 and Romania’s participation in the Seoul 1988 Olympic Games paved the way for the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1990 and for what became in 2008, and remains until today, Romania’s only strategic partnership with an Asian country.

Before the pandemic, we witnessed with satisfaction a steady dynamic of the political dialogue between Romania and the Republic of Korea. In 2018, the speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea paid an official visit to Romania, which represented a new impetus and added value for the further development of the existing ties between the parliaments of the two countries. The ninth round of consultations between the Romanian and South Korean ministries of Foreign Affairs at the director general level, held in Seoul in October, paved the way for the official visit to the Republic of Korea of the minister of foreign affairs of Romania, accompanied by the minister for business environment, trade and entrepreneurship. The wide range of topics tackled during the official discussions with the minister of foreign affairs of the Republic of Korea, as well as with the prime minister of the Republic of Korea, was a genuine expression of the substantive, high-level political dialogue that exists between the two countries.

When speaking of history, it is noteworthy that the Romanian and Korean nations share a great deal of similarities. Just like Korea, Romania had to pay the price for the big powers’ geopolitical rivalry.

Recalling Romania’s recent history enables the Romanians to understand in a deep and very special way the feelings of the Korean nation and its dream of peaceful unification.

That is why, among other reasons, Romania was a consistently staunch supporter of the cause of peaceful denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and for the leading role of His Excellency Moon Jae-in, the president of the Republic of Korea, in the ongoing diplomatic process of reconciliation and peace building.

Last year, Romania and the Republic of Korea celebrated 30 years of diplomatic relations. This meaningful benchmark in bilateral relations was emphasized also in the congratulatory letters exchanged between the two presidents.

President Moon Jae-in mentioned the strengthening of two-way cooperation in areas such as politics, economy, education and culture. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis talked about the priority Korea holds in Romania’s external policy and the importance of bilateral cooperation on the international stage.

Even so, with high-level contacts proceeding at this pace, bilateral trade did not measure up to the expectations. In the investment field, too, there is much progress to be desired. Romania’s attractiveness was equal to the European average before COVID-19, which triggered a sharp decline in foreign direct investment but not a complete cutback. According to foreign investors, Romania’s growth potential lies in key sectors such as agriculture, IT, and transport and automotive. In this vein, Romania should focus on funding its highest priorities -- education, technological transformation, infrastructure -- and on leveraging resources in growing business sectors. Furthermore, it should prepare for any opportunity that may arise.

On the other hand, Romania has been placed in the top 15 European countries that attract the most foreign investment, while foreign investors’ perception of Romania’s attractiveness before the pandemic was equal to the European average: 27 percent of investors questioned planned to establish or expand operations in Romania before COVID-19.

However, the COVID-19 pandemic has had an inevitable impact on FDI across the globe, with 46 percent of investors having canceled, paused or decreased their investment plans for Romania. The fast reactions that the pandemic has revealed toward pressing issues -- such as safety and security measures, digital transformation, education and skills development, and infrastructure, among others -- will determine how Romania’s FDI attractiveness evolves post-pandemic.

Needless to say, Romania has a young, well-trained and well-educated labor force in which English is widely spoken, as well as abundant natural resources, geographical advantages and one of the largest markets in the European Union.

These attributes make Romania an increasingly attractive destination for foreign investment. Romania is the ninth-largest member of the EU by area, with 38,931 square kilometers of land, and the seventh-largest by population. Having a population of 20 million, Romania is the second-largest consumer market in Central-Eastern Europe and this market is growing, thus increasing opportunities, while entry barriers remain low. In this context, it is worth mentioning that the attractive location allows easy access to the former Commonwealth of Independent States countries, the Balkans, the Middle East and Northern Africa. Also, Romania is at the junction of three European transportation corridors: Nos. 4,7 and 9.

We hope that such advantages will persuade more Korean companies to be more active and present in Romania. So we take this opportunity to encourage business associations and companies that are looking for new, unconquered lands to explore to get more involved in further developing our economic trade and investment relations.

In light of this, Romania is a tourism destination for many people around the world. The richness of Romania’s tourism environment stretches beyond its value as a summer travel destination. Within the past few years, many specialized tourism niches in Romania have flourished such as religious tourism, wellness tourism, hiking tourism and wine tourism.

As for the cultural field, Korean products have long been popular among Romanians, and based on this, Romania can become not only another holiday destination for Koreans, but an ideal place to discover opportunities for cooperation in various fields. The first one that comes to mind is the cosmetics industry. In this area, Romania has an edge and it is sufficient to mention the well-known success story of Gerovital formula, also known as GH 3, which was discovered by professor Ana Aslan, who dedicated her life to researching the aging process and anti-aging remedies. In 1980 she invented a new product called Aslavital, which was used for prophylactic treatments of cerebral and cardiovascular aging processes, physical and mental asthenia or memory losses. Among the famous people who used Aslan’s Gerovital treatments were Mao Zedong, Charles de Gaulle, Salvador Dali, Sir Winston Churchill, Charlie Chaplin, Marlene Dietrich, Greta Garbo, Konrad Adenauer and John F. Kennedy, to mention only a few.

Considering that Koreans see beauty and skin care as an essential part of their daily lives, Romania is worth exploring in terms of cosmetic and makeup brands offering innovative and futuristic products on the global market. If that’s not a great reason to come to Romania, then we don’t know what is!

In sum, Romania is a country worth exploring and investing in, and the similarities between the two countries can facilitate the rejuvenation of our strategic partnership.

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Costin-Adrian Ionescu is chargé d'affaires  a.i. at the Embassy of Romania in Seoul. He contributed this column for The Korea Herald. -- Ed.