President Yoon delivers keynote address to the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly 'Restoring Trust and Reinvigorating Global Solidarity'

On September 20, President Yoon delivered a keynote speech at the UN General Assembly plenary session. During the General Debate, held under the theme "Rebuilding trust and reigniting global solidarity," Yoon expressed our commitment to actively contribute to addressing challenges such as global disparities. He pointed out that the gap between nations is growing amid a complex crisis, including the division of values and ideologies caused by the war in Ukraine, the contraction of the global economy and the escalation of the food and energy crisis, and raised the issue of three global divides: the development gap, the climate gap, and the digital divide, and laid out the direction of our support to mitigate the gap. He emphasized that countries with financial and technical capabilities should play a responsible role in closing the development gap, and said that the government's budget for ODA for next year has been expanded by more than 40%, and that it will use the expanded ODA to promote customized development cooperation with recipient countries and actively promote education and training. He said he would expand green ODA, including an additional $300 million to the Green Climate Fund (GCF) to help climate crisis-prone countries reduce carbon emissions and transition to clean energy. He said he would broadly utilize and share high-efficiency carbon-free energy (CFE) such as nuclear power and hydrogen, as well as renewable energy, as realistic alternatives to achieving carbon neutrality, and announced the creation of the Carbon Free Alliance, an open platform for the spread of carbon-free energy. He pledged to leverage South Korea's strengths in ICT to support the digital transformation of developing countries, and to play a leading role in shaping global digital norms and establishing AI governance. He proposed a "digital bill of rights" to realize a desirable future for the digital order, and a "global forum on AI" to support the establishment of a United Nations international organization on AI. He emphasized that the Republic of Korea will continue to play a responsible role in safeguarding international peace and security as a non-permanent member of the Security Council for the 2024-2025 term.

He reiterated Korea's commitment to implement a comprehensive support program for Ukraine, including security, humanitarian, and reconstruction, under the 'Ukraine Peace and Solidarity Initiative' pledge, and to contribute $300 million next year and prepare a medium- and long-term support package worth an additional $2 billion or more, following the last G20 Summit. He pointed out that North Korea's nuclear and missile programs are a grave challenge to peace not only in South Korea, but also in the region and around the world, and that it is self-contradictory that a permanent member of the UN Security Council, which is supposed to be the final guardian of world peace, is supported by a regime that armedly invades other sovereign states, wages war, and receives weapons and munitions necessary to wage war in direct violation of UN Security Council resolutions. He emphasized the need for solidarity and principled action by the international community, saying that if North Korea gets the information and technology it needs to enhance its WMD capabilities in exchange for conventional weapons from Russia, the Russo-DPRK military deal would be a provocation aimed directly at the security and peace of not only Ukraine but also the Republic of Korea. He then explained the significance of Busan as a candidate for the 2030 World Expo and the purpose of hosting the event. He emphasized that Busan, the last bastion of freedom during the Korean War, is a symbolic city that led the "Miracle of the Han River," rising from the ruins of war to become the world's second-largest transshipment port, and said that through the Busan World Expo, Korea will share its experience of growth and development with the international community. He noted that the Busan World Expo will be a platform of solidarity for global citizens to expand freedom while overcoming crises together, as well as a festive space for sharing history, culture, products, and future visions, and called attention to the international community's interest in Korea's bid to host the Expo. President Yoon's participation in the UN General Assembly for the second consecutive year was an opportunity to strengthen the international community's support for Korea's foreign policy and to publicize our determination to actively play a role befitting our country's status.

President Yoon unveils five principles of a "Digital Bill of Rights" at New York's Digital Vision Forum

President Yoon delivered a keynote speech at the New York Digital Vision Forum held at New York University on September 21st in the U.S., where he laid out the basic principles of a "Digital Bill of Rights," a code for a new digital order, in the presence of U.S. leaders and world-renowned scholars. The five basic principles of the Digital Bill of Rights are: ΣGuarantee freedom and rights in the digital environment, ΤFair access to digital and equality of opportunity, ΥSecure and trustworthy digital society, ΦFacilitate digital innovation based on autonomy and creativity, and ΧPromote human well-being. At the forum, three Korean organizations (Institute of Information & Communications Technology Planning & Evaluation, KAIST, and Korea Software Industry Association) and New York University signed an MOU on 'AI-Digital Business Partnership' to jointly promote R&D, human resource development, and commercialization in the AI-digital field.

President Yoon expressed his enthusiastic support for the MOU, saying that it will serve as a springboard to solidify the partnership between Korea and NYU in the field of AI and digital, and that researchers and companies from both countries will be able to expand globally together through it. The forum was attended by leading U.S. figures including NYU President Linda Mills, New York City Deputy Mayor Maria Torres-Springer, National Science Foundation President Seturaman Pananathan, former U.S. Ambassador to Korea Mark Lippert, and NYU Professor Jan Lekun, winner of the Turing Prize, the Nobel Prize for digital and one of the four global masters of AI, while on the Korean side, Minister of Science and ICT Lee Jong-ho, KAIST President Lee Kwang-hyung, and Korea Software Industry Association President Cho Jun-hee. Democratic Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer supported the event with a video congratulation.