S. Korea to host World Economic Forum on East Asia

By Kim Deok-hyun
SEOUL, June 15 (Yonhap) -- More than 300 government and corporate leaders will
gather in the South Korean capital this week to search for ways to overcome the
current global economic crisis, a local business group said Monday.

Preventing protectionism, "green growth" strategies and the future of Asian
banking, will be discussed among other fields at the two-day meeting of the World
Economic Forum on East Asia starting Thursday in Seoul.
"At the meeting, we will discuss how Asian nations can overcome the current
economic crisis," said Cho Suck-rai, chairman of the Federation of Korean
Industries, in a taped message.
"We will also cover reforming the global financial system, strengthening
financial regulation and promoting free trade," said Cho, who is one of five
co-chairs for the forum.
The forum is designed to generate insight on building a common agenda for
revitalizing the global economy through new models of growth, technologies and
corporate practice, the Geneva-based World Economic Forum said on its Web site.
In addition, it will provide an opportunity to discuss the expanding leadership
roles of Asia's G20 members, which is set against the focus of the new U.S.
administration on strengthening the trans-Pacific alliance, it said.
Participants will include South Korean Prime Minister Han Seung-soo, Standard
Chartered Plc Chief Executive Officer Peter Sands, Asia Development Bank Managing
Director General Rajat Nag and Samsung Electronics Co. Vice Chairman Lee
Yoon-woo.
The South Korean government also plans to use the forum as a chance to raise its
national profile as it prepares to assume the chairmanship of the G20 in 2010,
according to the federation.
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