Egypt, S.Korea celebrate friendship, Korean national day

CAIRO – 2 November 2021: In commemoration of the Korean national day of 2021 which also marks the 26th anniversary of Korea-Egypt diplomatic relations, Ambassador of the Republic of Korea in Egypt, Mr. Hong Jin-wook hosted a friendly dinner on Sunday, October 31 at his residence inviting Egyptian friends of Korea.

As the saying goes by “the best things come in small packages” and also to ensure social distancing, this small gathering was hosted with around 25 best friends of Korea including not only the Egyptian government officials, businessmen, sports celebrities but also dear Egyptian citizens having wonderful stories with Korea in diverse sectors - art, education, music, health and even cultural heritage.

With his welcoming remarks, Ambassador Hong, emphasizing our best government-to-government cooperation of all time which is recently extending even to health, e-government and defense industry far beyond trade and investment, said that the Embassy has made a supreme effort for various public diplomacy activities in order to get closer to Egyptian friends in spite of this year’s unceasing Covid-19 situation recognizing its importance to make our relations sustainable and future-oriented.

 

Ambassador Hong also mentioned that today’s event has greater significance in the sense that this friendly dinner is also a great opportunity to share the stories of ten Egyptian friends who are representing two countries’ ever-lasting friendship as an expert in various fields.

The so-called all-time best friend of Korea, H.E. Dr. Mohamed Maait, Minister of Finance who joined this feast along with other governmental officials and businessmen such as Counsellor Ahmed Manaa, Secretary General of the House of Representatives, Ambassador Ms. Amal Salama, Acting Assistant Minister for Asian affairs of MOFA, Major General Osama Ahmed Ezzat, Head of Armament Authority and Mr. Khaled Nosseir, Chairman of Korea-Egypt Business Council to name a few, hailed the rapidly growing relations of our two countries and reiterated his tireless support for more Korean investment in Egypt.

Mr. Seif Eissa and Ms. Hedaya Malak Wahb who won the 1st and 2nd medals in Taekwondo, a Korean traditional martial art at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games also enjoyed the wonderful night sharing their beautiful stories with Korea and Korean culture as frequent visitors to Korea.

 

The following invitees of special significance to Korea shared their beautiful stories on how Korea has influenced their lives and their thoughts on Egypt-Korea relations. 

“The first Egyptian to study abroad in Korea in 1995 and now a very well-known tour guide and interpreter in the Korean community,” said Mr. Ezzeldin, one of the invitees.

“The class representatives of the Korean language departments of Ainshams University and Aswan University, which were established in 2005 and 2016 respectively and are playing a pivotal role in introducing Korean studies in the country and serving as a catalyst for promoting mutual understanding between Korea and Egypt,” said other invitees Ms. Rahma Marie and Mr. Yehya Essam