“Global Forums Must BecomePlatforms for Cooperation, Not Just Connection.”

- Rethinking the role of international forumsin an age of geopolitical division

[International Forum Session] From Connection to Cooperation: How Global Forums Reinvent Collaboration in a Fragmented World

❍ The International Forum Session "From Connection to Cooperation: How Global Forums Reinvent Collaboration in a Fragmented World," hosted by the Jeju Peace Institute (JPI), was held at Diamond Hall A of the Haevich Hotel at 5:10 p.m. on Wednesday, June 24.

❍ Chaired by KIM Bong-hyun, former President of the Jeju Peace Institute and former Ambassador to Australia, the panel featured Peter GRK, Secretary-General of the Bled Strategic Forum and National Coordinator for the Western Balkans; KIM Hee-eun, President and CEO of the Center for Asia Pacific Strategy (CAPS); ZHANG Jun, Secretary-General of the Boao Forum for Asia (BFA); KUDO Yasushi, President of the Genron NPO; and OH Youngjin, President of The Korea Times.

❍ The session was arranged to rethink the role of international forums in an era of deepening geopolitical division and compound crises. The panelists stressed that international forums should fill the gaps that official state-to-state diplomacy cannot, and called for elevating forums into substantive cooperation platforms that connect governments, the private sector, regions, international organizations, and other forums.

❍ ZHANG Jun, Secretary-General of the Boao Forum for Asia, said, "The world is facing increasing fragmentation, division, and confrontation among major powers," warning that "unilateralism, protectionism, power politics, and hegemonic practices" could grow worse if left unchecked. He argued that, as solidarity, cooperation, and multilateralism become more important, "international forums can play a constructive role in building trust and promoting cooperation," adding that "collective efforts of this kind can strengthen multilateralism, deepen international cooperation, contribute to climate action, and accelerate green transformation."

❍ Peter GRK, Secretary-General of the Bled Strategic Forum, said, "The multilateral system established after the Second World War is steadily weakening, and the international order is increasingly shaped by power rather than rules." He noted that "non-state actors now play a much greater role in international affairs than in the past — a reality that must be considered when discussing future geopolitical developments," and stressed that "emerging actors, particularly those from the Global South, must be given a greater voice in shaping future governance arrangements."

❍ KIM Hee-eun, President and CEO of the Center for Asia Pacific Strategy, described the current period as "the growing pains of genuine globalization," noting that people are "still learning what it means to live and cooperate as citizens of a truly globalized world." She said "international forums, conferences, and strategic dialogues have become more important than ever," and argued that "the next stage of global cooperation should focus not only on connecting people but also on connecting platforms."

❍ KUDO Yasushi, President of the Genron NPO, said that "when governments become trapped in confrontation, non-governmental actors, civil society organizations, think tanks, and international forums become even more important as channels of communication," and that "collaboration begins when actors with different perspectives accept shared responsibility for common challenges." He added, "The greatest achievement of dialogue is not the meeting itself or the reports it produces, but the trust that is built between people over time. Trust can endure even when political circumstances change or formal dialogue mechanisms are interrupted; the true vitality of dialogue lies in human relationships and in a shared sense of responsibility for the future."

❍ OH Youngjin, President of The Korea Times, called artificial intelligence "one of the most consequential challenges facing humanity," warning that because "AI development follows a 'winner-takes-all' logic," it accelerates fragmentation and weakens "the prospects for meaningful global cooperation." He called for "a new global architecture that is more democratic, more responsive, and better equipped to govern emerging technologies," one that holds "major technology companies accountable under standards comparable to those applied to elected governments," while preventing "excessive concentrations of power.“

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