South Korea and Hungary: Results and Opportunities in Scientific Cooperation József Pálinkás President of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences

Why we are here?  The 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in  A special event that contributed greatly to this process: the 1988 Olympic Games of Seoul, an outstanding and memorable event for both nations.  Negotiations, lead by Park Chul-un, former minister of sports led to – on September 13, 1988 –announcement of sending permanent representatives to the two countries.

Bilateral relations  Hungary was the first country of this region that established diplomatic relations with the Republic of Korea, on 1 st of February  In the same year, several other Agreements were signed:  Agreement on Cultural and Scientific Cooperation  Agreement on Mutual Promotion and Protection of Investment  Agreement on Avoidance of Double Taxation  This created the basic conditions for many contacts in the field of economy, culture and science.  For Korea, diplomatic ties with Hungary were an impetus for extending relations with other countries of the region.

Economic relations in numbers  The trade relations started in the 1980’s, and the value of trade in 1986 did not exceed 4,8 m USD.  In 2006 the value of trade surpassed 1,6 billion dollars.  In 2007, Korean investment in Hungary was nearly 1 billion dollars.  Samsung and Hankook Tire are the biggest Korean investors in Hungary with manufacturing lines of TV components and tires.  Main trading goods are automobiles, electronic appliances, pharmaceutical and agricultural products.

Trade balance in From the point of view of Hungary: EXPORTIMPORTTrade balance

Cultural relations  The Hungarian language in Korea:  Hankuk University of Foreign Studies  The Hungarian tradition of classical music in Korea  Hungarian composers, teachers and musicians are well known in Korea.  The Korean Liszt Society and the Korean Kodály Society in Seoul regularly organise concerts and series of lectures.  Pro Cultura Hungarica medal  awarded by the Hungarian Minister of Culture conferred to four Koreans who made outstanding contributions to the development of bilateral cultural cooperation  Korean culture in Hungary  Activities of the Hungarian-Korean Friendship Society

Scientific and Technological Cooperation  Hungarian- South-Korean intergovernmental co-operation in S&T  Started in March 1989  mainly supporting mobility  Hungarian-Korean Technical Cooperation Centre (HKTCC)  founded in 1992, operating at the Budapest University of Technology and Economics  Mediating the scientific and technological contacts  Co-operation of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences  with the Korea Science and Engineering Foundation (KOSEF)  Starts in 1989 and supports mobility, project-based cooperation, exchange of know-how and methods.  Bilateral workshops held annually - Physics, Chemistry, Mathematics, etc.  with the Korean Academy of Science and Technology (KAST)  Starts in 1999 and provide ramework for joint projects and seminars.

Scientific cooperation on EU level  24 currently running projects with Korean involvement in the the 6th and 7th Framework Programme  One of the latest initiatives in FP7 is KOReAn scientific cooperation NETwork with the European Research Area (KORANET):  Aims at increasing of Korean participation in the 7th Research Framework  Exchange best practices as regards the planning and implementation of S&T policies and international S&T cooperation  Hungarian partner: HKTCC

 Major international research project to demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of a fusion reactor.  Fusion power will be 10 times greater than the external power delivered to heat the plasma.  Partners: the European Union, the Republic of Korea, Japan, China, the Russian Federation, the United States and India.  Estimated costs: around 10 billion euros.  EU covering about 50 % of the construction costs.  Korea’s financial share in the construction is about 10%  Hungarian experts play an active role the development. International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER)

Conditions for R&D  Large difference in state expenditure on R&D.  Better conditions for R&D in Korea.  Expenditure on R&D:  3,2% per cent of GDP in Korea  0,97% of GDP in Hungary

Expenditure and performance of R&D  Total spending  m USD in Korea  1819 m USD in Hungary –  Per capita spending:  USD in Korea  173 USD in Hungary  Industry in financing R&D:  75 % in Korea  44 % in Hungary  Industry in the performance of R&D:  77% in Korea  50% in Hungary

Hungary: output vs. investment  A long tradition of outstanding scientific accomplishment.  Today: still an outstanding output in spite of unfavorable economic conditions.  Hungarian scientists are productive: publication output above the EU average, while investment in R&D is half of its economic potential.  Hungary ranks 34th and 30th among 140 countries in the number of publications and citations.  Hungarian performance on EU grants:  Of approximately 3650 current FP7 projects, 257 with Hungarian involvement (7%) and 39 projects with a Hungarian principal investigator (1%)  ERC Starting Grant: Hungary is ranked 2nd in number of grants and per R&D expenditure and 4th per 1000 researchers.  ERC Advanced grants: Hungary is ranked 3rd in number of proposals per R&D expenditure and 9th in number of proposals per 1000 researchers.

World Science Forum  Organized by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, in partnership with UNESCO and ICSU on 5-7 November  Focus on "Knowledge and Future"  Among the core themes: the approach of science to sustainable development, to ecosystem services  Heads of State panel on global issues related to science and sustainable development  6 invited participants from Korea – more experience with sustainable development than Hungary

Science for sustainable development: Green New Deal in Korea  „Green New Deal“ initiative of the Korean government:  USD 32 billion project for more efficient energy consumption, environmentally friendly homes, forestry, cleaning rivers, constructing bicycle paths, railways, etc.  Creating jobs in sectors producing/developing sustainable technology  Korea has one of the world’s largest solar power stations  Development of the exploitation of tidal power  The initiative also mobilises scientific organisations and funding agencies  Cooperation in research on sustainable technologies should be strengthened

Summary  Results of the past 20 years:  Bilateral contacts and agreements on many fields  Strong cultural relations and increasing scientific cooperation  Boom of trade relations  Perspectives for the next 20 years  Exchange of know-how and experience on the field of science funding and scientific education  Enhanced research cooperation on sustainable technologies  Strengthening of mutual cultural presence  Further improvement of trade balance