Kim Chan-woo, South Korea's ambassador for Arctic Affairs, opened the first seminar between the two countries on Arctic issues.
"The Arctic is one of the last frontiers left to mankind, and it will be the Arctic sea routes which will assume a pivotal role in utilizing these opportunities," he said in his opening remarks. "When energy, mineral resources and goods move along the Arctic sea routes, the Arctic will be born as a new zone of prosperity."
Last year, Kim was appointed as South Korea's first Arctic affairs ambassador, reflecting the importance Seoul places on strengthening cooperation with the northern countries.
The heightened interest in the region comes as new business opportunities are expected to arise from the possible emergence of a viable trade route in the Arctic Ocean. It also falls in line with President Park Geun-hye's Eurasia Initiative, which seeks to build a single, united Eurasia through increased links in transport, infrastructure, IT and other sectors.
With climate change, glaciers around the North Pole have been melting at an increasingly fast pace, leading some experts to estimate that it will be possible to navigate the waters year round by 2030.
According to South Korea's foreign ministry, the Northern Sea Route would reduce the distance between the Korean port city of Busan and the Dutch city of Rotterdam by 32 percent, from 22,000 kilometers through the Suez Canal, to 15,000 kilometers. Shipping goods between the two points would take 30 days instead of 40.
If commercialized, the Northern Sea Route would also present a vast array of new business opportunities for South Korean firms in shipbuilding, floating platforms and infrastructure, Kim said.
The Arctic region has a population of 12 million and a total gross domestic product of $450 billion. (Yonhap)
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