Source: От общей истории к новому партнерству: как корё-сарам связывают Казахстан и Корею

The first day of President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s state visit to the Republic of Korea showed that relations between the two countries rest not only on politics and economics. A significant part of the agenda focused on people who have built ties between Kazakhstan and Korea over decades.

In Seoul, the President separately highlighted Kazakhstan’s more than 100,000-strong Korean community and its contribution to the country’s economic and socio-political development. The Head of State recalled the cultural centers, the Academic Korean Theatre, the newspaper and radio program in the Korean language, and emphasized: “We have created favorable conditions for all ethnic groups.”

This focus continued at a ceremony where state, public, academic and medical figures of the Republic of Korea were awarded the Dostyk Order, 2nd Degree. Among those honored was Professor Son Yong Hun, who has taught the Kazakh language for more than 20 years and introduced Korean society to Kazakhstan and its culture.

Why does Kazakhstan’s domestic model of social harmony become an advantage in foreign policy, and how can historical trust be transformed into new educational, scientific and business ties? These questions were addressed by Natalia Yem, Candidate of Historical Sciences, Associate Professor at Al-Farabi KazNU and visiting research fellow at the Institute of Asian Studies at Seoul National University.

– Today, President Tokayev said: “The Koryo-saram community lives in peace and harmony on Kazakh soil and makes a significant contribution to strengthening unity and solidarity.” Why did this issue receive such prominent attention during the state visit?

– For me, this is not only a subject of research, but also part of my family history. I belong to the third generation of Koreans deported to Kazakhstan in 1937. But the history of Koreans in Kazakhstan cannot be reduced to deportation alone. Over the following decades, they linked their future to the country and contributed to science, education, medicine, culture, public administration and entrepreneurship.

After independence, this integration acquired an institutional foundation. The Assembly of the People of Kazakhstan, the Association of Koreans of Kazakhstan and regional organizations created an environment in which people can preserve their own culture while simultaneously being a full part of society.

In my research, I call this “emotional legitimacy”: a person does not have to choose between civic and ethnic identity.

I view President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev’s policy of strengthening social unity and civic identity as a continuation and development of this model. Its strength lies in the fact that unity is built not on erasing differences, but on equality among citizens and shared responsibility for the country’s future.

Therefore, the President’s statement today also has a foreign-policy dimension. Kazakhstan is demonstrating to Korea a concrete result of its policy: cultural diversity can strengthen society while also becoming a resource for international trust.

– Today, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev awarded the Dostyk Order, 2nd Degree, to Korean politicians, public figures, scholars and doctors. Among them was Professor Son Yong Hun, who has taught the Kazakh language for more than 20 years. What does such recognition mean for people who have spent years building ties between the two societies?

– Interstate agreements create the political framework, but the sustainability of relations largely depends on people who fill that framework with substance every day: scholars, teachers, entrepreneurs, and public and cultural figures.

In this sense, the Koryo-saram are a special form of human capital for Kazakhstan. Its value is determined not only by origin, but also by almost ninety years of experience living in the country, professional expertise, knowledge of Kazakhstani society and connections with the Republic of Korea.

A corresponding infrastructure has also developed. The Association of Koreans of Kazakhstan brings together regional, youth, cultural and professional organizations. The Business Club under the Association operates in 11 cities and brings together more than one hundred entrepreneurs and company executives. Korean organizations beginning operations in Kazakhstan often use these networks to understand the local environment more quickly and find reliable partners.

One Korean diplomat told me that his Japanese colleague compared this to the game of go: it was as if the Korean side already had several of its own stones on the board.

Therefore, President Tokayev’s decision today has greater significance than a ceremonial award alone. Kazakhstan is publicly recognizing the contribution of people who have strengthened mutual understanding for decades. Such a policy increases the value of human ties and makes the strategic partnership more sustainable.

– President Tokayev called the Republic of Korea a strategic partner of Kazakhstan. You work in Seoul and observe attitudes toward our country from within the Korean academic environment. How much more visible has Kazakhstan become?

– The changes are indeed noticeable. Today, the word “Kazakhstan” in the Korean academic community no longer requires lengthy explanations. The country is known and attracts interest, and there is an established circle of specialists in Central Asia. At the same time, the number of Kazakhstani students coming not only for language courses but also for master’s and doctoral programs, as well as engineering and technical programs, is growing.

The modernization policy and expansion of cooperation with leading Asian countries pursued by President Tokayev provide the necessary institutional foundation for this. It is particularly important that political openness is gradually being translated into practical projects.

Alatau is a telling example. In cooperation with Korean partners, areas including smart-city development, digital governance, manufacturing, logistics and urban mobility are being considered here. The projects are at different stages, but what is fundamentally important is that Kazakhstan is offering the Korean side participation not in a single initiative, but in the creation of an entire modern technological environment.

This is changing the perception of the country. For Korea, Kazakhstan is becoming not only a Central Asian state with a historically close Korean community, but also a modern partner open to education, technology, research and business.

President Tokayev’s current visit further strengthens this trend and expands interest in Kazakhstan within Korean society.

– Professor Son Yong Hun, who has taught the Kazakh language for more than two decades, was among those honored today. To what extent can education and academic ties become as strong a bridge between the countries as the historical connection through the Koryo-saram?

– This is one of the areas where relations can achieve the most long-term effect.

Kazakhstan has already established a substantial international foundation in higher education. By August 2026, 33 branches of foreign universities from 12 countries had begun operating in the country, while strategic partnerships had been established with 40 leading universities around the world. This demonstrates the consistency of the policy of international openness in education.

With Korea, the next step should be to move from individual exchanges to joint laboratories, research and educational programs. The QAIST project in Alatau is a telling example, focused on combining engineering education, research and the commercialization of developments.

Artificial intelligence is particularly promising. Under AI-Sana, more than 700,000 students have completed basic training, while 80 universities are developing their own AI solutions. Kazakhstan can therefore already be viewed not only as a recipient of foreign technologies, but also as a potential partner in their joint development.

In my view, this is precisely in line with President Tokayev’s modernization agenda. International cooperation should leave competencies, trained personnel, research and new technologies within the country.

If this principle becomes the foundation of Kazakh-Korean academic ties, educational diplomacy will be able to contribute to the country’s development for decades.

– Today, Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called the current day very important for Kazakh-Korean relations and emphasized that strengthening friendship serves the common interests of the two peoples. What should follow the visit to turn the high political level into a sustainable system of ties?

– The main opportunity presented by the current visit is that attention at the presidential level can provide additional institutional support to contacts that already exist.

In my view, a medium-term program of cooperation in education, science, culture and youth exchanges would be useful, with specific projects, responsible organizations and clear timelines. A regular Kazakh-Korean competition for joint research could be established in artificial intelligence, digital education, smart cities, ecology, public health and cultural heritage.

Another opportunity is linked to 2027, when it will be 90 years since Koreans began living in Kazakhstan. A joint digital archive of Koryo-saram history could be created for this date. K-Park in Alatau could also become an important platform where the memory of the past is combined with cultural, educational and business cooperation.

Kazakhstan already has its main advantage: state policy has allowed the Korean community to preserve its identity while simultaneously becoming a full part of a united society. Now this successful domestic experience can also contribute to international relations.

That is why President Tokayev’s current visit has a strategic continuation. It is based on almost ninety years of trust, but translates that history into a modern agenda of science, education, technology and professional cooperation.