Park takes the 1st step to link advanced, emerging market states

President Park Geun-hye arrived in St. Petersburg, Russia on Wednesday, kicking off her eight-day overseas tour. Park will attend the G20 summit on Thursday and Friday. It will be an occasion for her to debut in multilateral diplomacy.

The G20 summit will be held under the theme “Growth of the global economy and creation of quality jobs.” Starting with a welcome reception for heads of states in attendance on Thursday, the summit will be concluded through adoption of a “communiqué of G20 leaders” on Friday. Topping the agendas at the event are exit strategy in the U.S., represented by the conclusion of quantitative easing through withdrawal of economic stimulus measures, and resulting economic crisis facing emerging market countries.

The U.S., which has been boosting the economy by injecting ample liquidity into the market since the global financial crisis in 2008, is forecast to withdraw dollars through purchase of assets and other measures beginning this month, but emerging market countries including China and Brazil are opposed to the move, claiming, “The U.S., a country of key currency, should not implement a drastic change of its monetary policy.” For this reason, advanced countries and emerging market countries are expected to exchange fierce verbal offensives at this year’s G20 forum.

In this regard, attention is focusing on messages that President Park will deliver in her speeches twice. Park plans to present measures to address conflict between advanced countries including the U.S. and emerging markets triggered by the former’s implementation of exit strategy, and global high unemployment and unbalanced growth. A source at the Korean presidential office said, “Attention should be focused on how well President Park’s messages will resonate with G20 member states.”

Park will deliver her first speech at a session themed “Growth and the world economy,” which will take place on Thursday afternoon. According to the presidential office, President Park will convey a message to advanced countries that as the U.S. exit strategy could lead to an economic crisis in emerging market countries, extra caution is needed, and to emerging market states that in order to secure a safety net that would absorb external economic shocks, measures should be taken to improve soundness by which to stably operate their macro-economy.”

In other words, Park plans to state that in order to minimize risk factors in the global economy, close collaborations are required between advanced countries and emerging market states, with Korea vowing to play a bridging role between the two sides. Since Park will deliver her Thursday’s speech after the end of speeches by leaders of advanced countries and before the start of addresses by leaders of emerging market countries, her speech is expected to provide a springboard for Korea to achieve successful “diplomacy as a semi-advanced country by winning sympathy and consent from member states.”

At a session themed “Growth through quality jobs and investment” on Friday afternoon, Park will deliver the “lead speech,” and introduce a “roadmap for achieving 70 percent employment rate,” which the Korean government is pushing to implement. The presidential office said that President Park will emphasize that the International Monetary Fund and the International Labor organization should find reasons and solutions for global high unemployment rate and unbalanced growth before the G20 summit in Australia next year.”

As for the theme of job creation, senior presidential secretary for economic affairs Cho Won-dong said Russia, the host to this year’s G20 summit, has displayed strong ambition, and prepared a separate session by including it in the summit’s agenda, and made special request on President Park to deliver the lead speech. The presidential office said if consensus is formed on Park’s speech, it will add to momentum to ensure that the issue of job creation will remain a key agenda until the next G20 summit to be held in Australia.

On President Park’s lead speech, the presidential office said, “It reflects Korea’s commitment to serve as `facilitator’ who would elevate the stature and functions of the G20, whose influence has been gradually weakening since the G20 summit in Seoul in 2010, and member countries’ expectations on this.”

During her visit to Russia, President Park will hold bilateral summit talks with four heads of states, namely Russian President Vladimir Putin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Italian Prime Minister Enrico Letta, and Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, respectively.