President Lee Jae-myung, on an official visit to Egypt, proposed the Middle East–Korea joint vision, the "SHINE Initiative."
In a speech at Cairo University on the 20th local time, Lee said this and added, "Based on this, we will open a future in which the Middle East and the Korean Peninsula thrive together."
In SHINE, S stands for stability, H for harmony, I for innovation, N for network, and E for education.
Among these, stability (S) and harmony (H) become the principles for building peace on the Korean Peninsula and in the Middle East. Lee said, "The Lee Jae-myung administration seeks to end the era of North-South hostility and confrontation and to open a new era of peaceful coexistence and joint growth," adding, "We will gradually expand inter-Korean exchange and cooperation, support efforts to normalize relations between (North Korea and) the international community, including between North Korea and the United States, and pursue denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula in a gradual and practical manner."
Lee added, "Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi also showed firm support for this vision."
Lee said, "Korea has also contributed to Middle East peace, including by deploying the Dongmyeong Unit to Lebanon in 2007, and is aligning its intentions toward a constructive resolution of the Israel-Palestine issue," emphasizing, "On this visit, we will uphold the value of solidarity in the Middle East as well, including by newly contributing $10 million to the Egyptian Red Crescent, to signify our commitment to overcoming the Gaza situation together." The Red Crescent is a relief organization in the Arab world similar to the Red Cross.
Lee presented innovation (I) as the key word of the bilateral economic cooperation vision. He said, "While solidifying cooperation in the energy and construction sectors that has already been carried out, we will broaden the horizon of cooperation to innovative fields such as artificial intelligence (AI) and hydrogen."
He continued, "We will not stop efforts to strengthen the institutional foundation of free trade, including a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Korea and Egypt," and emphasized, "Without large-scale construction orders or crude oil imports, Korea, the world's 10th-largest economy, could not exist. The ultrafast, compressed growth known as the 'Miracle on the Han River' is an achievement that would have been impossible without help from the Middle East. Now it is Korea's turn to contribute to the 'Miracle on the Nile.'"
He also unveiled a plan to expand people-to-people exchanges centered on network (N) and education (E). Lee said, "We will broaden institutional support so that more Egyptian students can study in Korea," adding, "We will also train Middle East experts in Korea."
Addressing the students, Lee encouraged them, saying, "In fact, the core of the 'SHINE Initiative' is simple. Your dream for peace and prosperity is the future of our two countries," and, "The protagonists who will link the Miracle on the Han River and the Miracle on the Nile as one are all of you here today."