Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee on Aug. 30 at the international conference room of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, Korea in Seoul's Jongno-gu District holds a joint declaration after the 12th Korea-China-Japan Culture Ministers' Meeting was held online. (Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism photographer Heo Man-jin)

By Lee Jihae

Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hwang Hee, Japanese Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Koichi Hagiuda, and Chinese Communist Party Secretary of Ministry of Culture and Tourism Hu Heping on Aug. 30 discussed cultural exchanges in the COVID-19 era at the 12th Korea-China-Japan Culture Ministers' Meeting. 

The dialogue was initially slated for last year in Kitakyushu, Japan, but got postponed for a year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Japan hosted the meeting this year online.

The three ministers agreed that though each country's cultural sector was hit hard by the pandemic, cultural and art activities and exchanges are crucial methods of human connection. They also discussed arranging and implementing new ways of cultural and art exchanges through state-of-the-art technology in the post-COVID-19 era.

The three sides will also implement in-person and online exchanges among the cultural cities of East Asia and member countries of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and cultural capitals of Europe. They will push ahead with joint cultural and arts programs ahead of next year's Beijing Winter Olympics.

Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, the Chinese cities of Wenzhou and Jinan, and Japan's Oita Prefecture have received certificates on their designation as East Asian cultural cities for 2022.

The three ministers also announced the Kitakyushu Declaration, a joint statement on the resumption and development of trilateral cultural exchange and cooperation.

First held in China in 2007, the trilateral meeting has covered joint cultural agenda and released joint declarations under the basic principle of mutual cooperation.

Minister Hwang said that based on these discussions, the three countries will keep discussing new methods of cultural exchange for the non-contact era.

jihlee08@korea.kr