"Yoon: A Grade for Kennedy School Students"... Professor Noh Satisfied with 'Soft Power' Response

"If you are a Kennedy School student, you get an A grade."

This is what President Yoon Suk-yeol heard from Professor Joseph Nye of Harvard University during a conversation following his speech at Harvard University on the 28th (local time).

President Yoon in conversation with Harvard University Professor Joseph Nye [Photo by Yonhap News]

Professor Nye is a renowned American political scientist who established the 'East Asia Policy (also known as the Nye Initiative)' during the early Clinton administration. Unlike former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who viewed international relations from the perspective of 'power rivalry,' Nye pursues a logic of harmony based on 'interdependence.'

On that day, President Yoon delivered a speech at Harvard University's Kennedy School in Boston titled "Pioneering a New Freedom Trail." He spoke for about 20 minutes in Korean, explaining the newly adopted Washington Declaration as a new concept of mutual defense including nuclear weapons. He also criticized North Korea as a force threatening freedom and democracy.

"North Korean nuclear threat is imminent..."

After the speech, a dialogue with Professor Nye and the audience followed. Professor Nye shook hands with President Yoon and said, "Very good," then added, "I sincerely thank you for such an excellent speech. Many outstanding Korean students have studied at Harvard Kennedy School."

During the discussion, questions about the 'Washington Declaration' adopted with U.S. President Joe Biden during this visit to the U.S. were raised.

President Yoon responded, "The North Korean nuclear threat is now right before our eyes," adding, "It is a situation where the South Korea-U.S. mutual defense concept must be upgraded to include nuclear weapons."

Regarding concerns that relations with China have worsened, he said, "We are always striving to pursue mutual interests based on mutual respect." He also mentioned that China has not fully fulfilled its role as a permanent member of the UN Security Council and emphasized that adopting the Washington Declaration was an inevitable choice.

Reaffirming cooperation in South Korea-China and South Korea-Japan relations and discussing future South Korea-Japan relations and the North Korean nuclear issue, Professor Nye said, "Let's move on to a slightly more positive topic. The atmosphere was a bit heavy," shifting the subject.

"If there are difficulties in doing business, I will remove them"

President Yoon Seok-yeol delivering a speech at Harvard Kennedy School
[Photo by Yonhap News]

He asked, "South Korea is known as a soft power powerhouse. It has captivated the world with its cultural resources. What efforts do you plan to strengthen South Korea's position as a soft power powerhouse?"

President Yoon replied, "The government has hardly helped BTS, Blackpink, Minari, Squid Game, Parasite, and others. These were purely created by the private sector and the market, and the result of cooperation with American platform companies."

Referring to Professor Nye, President Yoon said, "When you wrote the book 'Soft Power' 20 years ago, I also read it. Hard power and heavy chemical industries can be promoted by the state, but the revival of soft power is not something the state should intervene in." He added, "However, if there are unnecessary regulations, the state should dismantle them, and by allowing individual countries to first remove regulations to create a global single market, soft power can be enhanced."

He continued, "Yesterday, I was invited to the American Film Association. Many representatives from Paramount, Universal, and Warner Bros. attended, and I told them to freely enter our market. I said that if you have difficulties doing business, I will remove them all, so do not worry and come in. I also said that we will create a single market with the world."

When the students applauded, Professor Nye smiled and said, "That was a truly perfect answer." He added, "If you are a Kennedy School student, that answer would immediately earn you an A grade."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.