Seoul: Ambassador Grbić visited the National Archives of Korea

The President of the Archives presented the activities and organisation of the National Archives of Korea and the Repository in Seongnam, as well as the ones in Busan, Daejon and Sejong. He pointed out that the mentioned archive centres are in charge of restoring and preserving historical records and documents of Korea, including the most valuable national historical treasures, such as the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, included in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register.

As part of the international cooperation, President Choi especially emphasised the activities of the UNESCO Category 2 Centre - the International Centre for Documentary Heritage with headquarters located in Korea.

The President explained that the National Archives in particular cooperated with similar institutions in the field of archiving from the countries and territories of the regions of Asia, and also pointed out the readiness for cooperation with other countries, including the Republic of Serbia. He said that the National Archives signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Archives of Serbia in 2017, followed by an exchange and cooperation. It was mutually assessed that efforts should be made to revive and concretise communication between the two archives in the forthcoming period for the benefit of both parties.

Ambassador Grbić thanked his interlocutor for the information provided and said that Serbia was familiar with the capacities and expertise of Korea as regards digitalisation of both public administration and archives, but that it would be useful to identify other areas of cooperation between the two archives. He briefed his interlocutor on the status of archives in Serbia and its destruction during the world wars, as well as the latest efforts to preserve it through the processes of restoration and digitalisation.

Ambassador Grbić also informed his interlocutor about the cooperation of Serbia with UNESCO, especially as regards preserving its cultural and religious heritage in Kosovo and Metohija, emphasising that the important and constructive role of Serbia in UNESCO was confirmed by the fact that Serbia currently chairs the UNESCO Executive Board very successfully. He pointed out that the Republic of Serbia had three entries in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register - Miroslav's Gospel, Nikola Tesla's Archive and the telegram with the Austro-Hungarian declaration of war on the Kingdom of Serbia.

After the meeting, the President of the National Archives organised a tour through the Repository, and the hosts presented the processes and techniques of restoration, preservation and digitisation of historical records (old written documents, photographs, videos, etc.) as well as part of the archives stored in the archival institution in Seongnam.