First Lady Kim Hye-kyung Meets Korean Residents in Canada: "Your Concern for Korea Must Have Been Difficult"

Kim Visits Calgary Korean Association Hall
"I increasingly feel that your longing for your homeland is much stronger than ours"

Kim Hye-kyung, the wife of President Lee Jae-myung, who is visiting Canada to attend the G7 Summit, visited the Calgary Korean Association Hall on the morning of June 17 (local time) and met with local Korean residents. She said, "I increasingly feel that your longing for your homeland is much stronger than ours, who are living in Korea."

Yonhap News Agency

Meeting with about 30 Korean residents, including Lee Eun-sun, the wife of the Korean ambassador to Canada, Kim said, "I have found that Koreans living overseas often know more about news from Korea than we do. I am often surprised at how well-informed and perceptive you are," she remarked.

She added, "I know there have been many difficulties, and that your concern for your homeland has made things even harder for a while. I hope today will be an opportunity for honest conversation, and a time for you to share your hopes for your homeland and for the new president."

Yonhap News Agency

Earlier, Choi Jin-young, president of the Calgary Korean Association, said, "Just having you here with us is a great comfort and encouragement to those of us living with the loneliness and hardships of immigrant life. I believe this meeting will be an unforgettable encouragement for our community, and that it will further strengthen our ties with our homeland in the future."

At the meeting with the Korean community in western Canada, about 30 Korean residents waved T-shirts emblazoned with the Taegeukgi and the words 'Republic of Korea,' chanting slogans such as 'Lee Jaemyung Number One.' Some residents were moved to tears and hugged Mrs. Kim.

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