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Although Korea had discussed opening trade with the United States in 1844, the United States Congress shelved the draft due to a lack of interest and knowledge of Korea.
The first encounter between Korea and the United States occurred a few years later when the American gunboat "USS South America" landed in Busan in 1853. Sailors of the ship remained in Korea for ten days and had safe and amiable contact with local Korean officials. Later, several American vessels became shipwrecked off the coast of Korea in 1855 and 1865. The crews received good treatment in Korea, before traveling to China for repatriation.
Korea's first major contact with Americans happened when a merchant ship, the General Sherman, landed off the Korean coast at the Daedong River, near Pyongyang, now North Korea, in 1886. The United States made trade offers to Korea at that time. An armed conflict arose between the ship's crew and Korean soldiers, however, and several of the crew members were killed.
Five years later, a U.S. Navy ship named after the state of "Colorado"' landed at Ganghwa Island in 1871 in order to establish a trade agreement with Korea. Due to miscommunication between the Korean and U.S officials, clashes occurred that became known in Korea as the "Little War" or the "Shinmiyangyo," the invasion of the American fleet in 1871.
Korea finally opened its doors to America when the two countries signed the ''Treaty of Peace, Amity, Commerce and Navigation" in Chemulpo (Incheon) in 1882. The treaty paved the way for Korea to "open its doors" to America through establishing mutual friendship and benefits between the two countries.
The U.S. appointed its first Minister to Korea, Lucius Foote. The Joseon Kingdom of Korea appointed Min Yong-ik to serve as Minister Plenipotentiary and Envoy Extraordinary to the U.S. in 1883. Since then, the two countries have built a comprehensive strategic alliance representing the values of freedom and peace while broadening their roles and responsibilities.
I had the great pleasure to attend the 2014 Korean-American Friendship Night Party on November 12, 2014 at Sheraton Grand Walker Hill, Seoul. The event was hosted by Han Sung-joo, Chairman of the Korean-American Association, and was sponsored by S.K.C Group. It was a beautiful fall evening to celebrate the close friendship between Korea and the United States.
Many prominent figures from Korea and America honored the banquet with their presence, including Chung Ui-hwa, Speaker of National Assembly of Korea, General Bernard S. Champoux, Commanding General of the 8th Army and Mark W. Lippert, U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Korea,
The dinner party was entertained by a lovely performance of a variety of jazz and pop musical standards. The concert was all the more worthwhile as it was a joint performance by the prominent harmonica player Jeon Je-deok and powerful guitarist SAGA Choi Woo-jun. Inspired by the elegant and distinctive melody of the concert, the attendees emphasized that "We Are One", Koreans and Americans are one.
Since its establishment in 1963, the Korean-American Association has made remarkable contributions to deepening friendly ties between Korea and the U.S. It is a civilian organization aimed at promoting mutual understanding, friendship and cooperation between Korean and American people in a wide range of fields such as politics, economy, academics and culture.
In view of the importance of ''People to People" diplomacy, I would like to urge the Korean-American Association to continue to play an instrumental role in promoting bilateral relationship between the two countries while upgrading cooperative relations with the U.S forces in Korea at the civilian level.
Choe Chong-dae is a guest columnist of The Korea Times and the president of Dae-kwang International Co., as well as a director of the Korean-Swedish Association. He can be reached at dkic98@chol.com.
