문재인 대통령 부인 김정숙 여사가 6일 오후 청와대에서 열린 아세안 3개국 유학생 초청 간담회에서 학생들과 인사하고 있다.

First lady Kim Jung-sook on March 6 greets a group of international students from three Southeast Asian nations in a luncheon held at Cheong Wa Dae.

By Park Gil-ja and Lee Hana
Photos = Cheong Wa Dae

First lady Kim Jung-sook on March 6 hosted a luncheon at Cheong Wa Dae for 29 international students from Brunei, Malaysia and Cambodia ahead of President Moon Jae-in’s official visits to the three countries from March 10-16.

Kim and the students watched a traditional dance performance then chatted for over an hour.

“The New Southern Policy spearheaded by the Korean government is aimed at strengthening ties between Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN),” the first lady said, greeting the students in Arabic.

“Providing a better educational environment for international students is one of the major goals of this initiative. If all of you here can act as a bridge between Korea and your home countries, we will surely become closer as partners in the global community.”

Rany Vorn, a Cambodian student studying for his doctorate in nursing at Chung-Ang University in Seoul, said, “The Korean healthcare system is really well organized, allowing patients to receive treatment at an affordable price. I’d like to take back this system to Cambodia.”

“I would definitely like to act as a bridge between the two countries.”

문재인 대통령 부인 김정숙 여사가 6일 오후 청와대에서 열린 아세안 3개국 유학생 초청 간담회에 참석한 유학생들과 함께 행사장에 입장하고 있다.

First lady Kim Jung-sook and a group of international students from Southeast Asia on March 6 walk through the halls of Cheong Wa Dae.

krun@korea.kr