The Cultural Heritage Administration of the Republic of Korea signed a “Memorandum of Understanding on Exchange and Cooperation in the Field of Cultural Heritage” with the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science of Mongolia on November 7^th to expand exchanges and cooperation between the two countries.

 

It is the second time for the Administration to sign a MOU with Mongolia, following the “Memorandum of Understanding on Exchange and Cooperation in the Field of Natural Heritage” which was signed with the Nature, Forest and Water Resource Agency of Mongolia in March, 2004. Under the 2004 MOU, the two organizations have been conducting joint researches on the breeding sites of eagles and spoonbills. Recently, more concrete cooperation projects were carried out, such as the joint study of Mongolian Petroglyph, Deer Stones and Epitaph.

 

The possibility of MOU in the field of cultural heritage was first mentioned in September this year when a delegation from the Cultural Heritage Administration visited Mongolia to extend the 2004 MOU in the field of natural heritage and met with the Mongolian Vice Minister of Education, Culture and Science, SANJBEGZIIN Tumur-Ochir during the visit. The two organizations had set November 7^th as the date for MOU signing because the Mongolian Vice Minister was to stay in Korea to attend the Educational Training Courses for Mongolian High-Level Policy Makers in Education.

 

According to the 2006 MOU, the two organizations will exchange human resources on a regular basis and implement joint projects regarding tangible and intangible cultural heritages, the World Heritage and museums. The 2006 MOU is expected to help the two countries share the recognition of their historical identities, both in the past and present, and lay the foundations of international cooperation.