Vice unification minister visits Germany to discuss Berlin's unification experience

Vice Unification Minister Kim Soo-kyung is seen in this Sept. 23 photo. Yonhap

Vice Unification Minister Kim Soo-kyung is seen in this Sept. 23 photo. Yonhap

By Kwak Yeon-soo

South Korea's Vice Unification Minister, Kim Soo-kyung, will visit Germany this week to attend the Day of German Unity celebrations and discuss the country's unification experience with senior German officials.

Hosted by the northern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the Day of German Unity event will be held on Thursday in the city of Schwerin. The Day of German Unity, which is celebrated annually on Oct. 3, commemorates German reunification, the day when the former German Democratic Republic (East Germany) officially joined the Federal Republic of Germany.

During her five-day visit, Kim will meet with Manuela Schwesig, minister president of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, and Carsten Schneider, minister of state for East Germany and Equivalent Living Conditions, to discuss Berlin's unification experience and the possibility of a unified Korea.

Kim will also meet with Joachim Gauck, former president of Germany, and State Secretary Dörte Dinger from the Office of the Federal President, to share President Yoon Suk Yeol's 8.15 Unification Doctrine and seek Berlin's cooperation and support for Seoul's commitment to achieving a peaceful unification of the two Koreas based on liberal democracy.

"Through Kim's visit, we hope to strengthen cooperation between South Korea and Germany regarding unification and North Korean policies and build consensus on a unified Korea based on freedom, peace and prosperity," the unification ministry said.

The two nations established the unification advisory committee in 2011 to share Germany's unification experience and have conducted annual meetings ever since.

Kim will give a special lecture at the Free University of Berlin and deliver a keynote speech at the "Frankfurt Korea Symposium 2024: Human Rights in North Korea" event hosted by the Northern Europe Municipal Chapter of the Peaceful Unification Advisory Council.

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