Co-Evolution: Growing Together — 2026 East Asia Future Forum

The 2026 East Asia Future Forum, jointly hosted by Edaily, Edaily TV, and the East Asia Culture Center, was successfully held on September 15.

Now in its fifth year, the East Asia Future Forum brings together experts from South Korea, China, and other major East Asian countries in the fields of economy, industry, technology, and culture to discuss the future and explore new directions for cooperation. Under this year’s theme, “Co-Evolution: Growing Together in an Era of Great Transformation,” leaders from across East Asia gathered to discuss future cooperation and shared growth.

Moon Hee-sang, Chairman of the East Asia Culture Center and former Speaker of the National Assembly, emphasized the importance of cooperation among East Asian countries, including Korea-China relations, at the 2026 East Asia Future Forum on September 15. He said, “When dialogue accumulates, it becomes trust, and when trust accumulates, it becomes a path forward.”

He added, “This forum is structured around two pillars: industry and technology, and culture and people. The idea is that when technology creates the path, culture flows along that path. And what sustains that path is peace.”

Chairman Moon also emphasized the principles of “seeking common ground while respecting differences” (求同存异) and “harmony without uniformity” (和而不同), stating, “Where we compete, we should compete fairly and confidently; where we can cooperate, we should join hands boldly. We must recognize and respect our differences and move forward together.”

Lee Ik-weon, President of Edaily, emphasized at the 2026 East Asia Future Forum on September 15, “East Asian countries have grown by influencing and shaping one another through longstanding economic, industrial, cultural, and people-to-people exchanges. Now is the time to seek new directions for cooperation that reflect the rapidly changing times.”

Lee added, “I hope this forum will establish itself not simply as a venue for exchanging views, but as a platform for discovering new possibilities for cooperation and translating them into meaningful, practical exchanges.”

Chinese Ambassador to South Korea Dai Bing, in his congratulatory remarks at the forum on September 15, stressed that “peace and cooperation in East Asia are urgently needed to respond to the rapidly changing international landscape.”

Ambassador Dai presented three key tasks for maintaining peace in East Asia: promoting peace, pursuing open cooperation and development, and strengthening people-to-people exchanges. Regarding trade and tariff conflicts, in particular, he noted, “If the stability of supply chains is undermined, no country can emerge as a winner.” He added, “All countries should uphold the spirit of 和而不同 — maintaining harmony while recognizing differences. Through mutual understanding and exchanges, let us work together to build peace and shared prosperity in East Asia.”

Park Jeung, Member of the National Assembly Executive Vice President of the Korea-China Parliamentarrians' Union , emphasized at the 2026 East Asia Future Forum on September 15 that “as President Lee Jae Myung and Chinese President Xi Jinping have said, artificial intelligence (AI) should evolve in a direction that contributes to human well-being and the advancement of civilization.”

Vice President Park noted, “New norms and challenges surrounding AI and semiconductors, the climate crisis, and energy security are common challenges that are difficult for any single country to address alone.” He added, “We must address these challenges through cooperation among East Asian countries and work together to build a sustainable future.”

Choung Byoung-gug, former Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said in his keynote speech at the 2026 East Asia Future Forum on September 15, “We need to improve Korea-China-Japan relations through cultural exchanges.” His remarks underscored the importance of building a foundation for sustainable cooperation by strengthening connections not only in the areas of economy and technology, but also through culture and people-to-people exchanges.

Du Peng, CEO of Huawei Korea, delivered a keynote speech titled “New Connections and the Future of Korea-China Industries” at the 2026 East Asia Future Forum (EAFF 2026), held on September 15 at the Grand Ballroom of The Plaza Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul. He emphasized the need to expand cooperation between the industries of South Korea and China, with a particular focus on artificial intelligence (AI).

Li Pai, Editor-in-Chief of Sina Finance delivered a keynote speech titled “New Opportunities for Economic Transformation and East Asian Cooperation” at the 2026 East Asia Future Forum held at The Plaza Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on September 15.