The schedule for the "6223 Future Forum" has been finalized. On the 27th, an event titled "Korean SMR's Future Vision" will be held at the Press Center. SMR stands for "Small Modular Reactor." The reason South Korea is globally renowned as a powerhouse in electricity is precisely thanks to such scientific technologies. I hope anyone interested will visit the venue and listen attentively.

Electricity is a vital resource for all industrial development. Indeed, electricity serves as the heart or main aorta of industry. Without electricity, South Korea's industrial development would have been impossible. You can tell immediately whether a country is developed or under-developed just by looking at its electricity. Even looking at satellite photos, the night views of the South and North are completely different.

Singapore, which has today become the world's number one nation in national competitiveness, could not have developed as it has if it had lacked electricity or air conditioning. People evaluate that "the causes of Singapore's development were former Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew's leadership and electricity." Because the country is doing so exceptionally well, air conditioning is turned on strongly everywhere you go. In the public library, it was so cold that even wearing a sweater, I was still chilly.

About 20 years ago, there was a Chinese student who came to study abroad in Singapore. That student said, "The thing that shocked me most when I came to Singapore was electricity." They mentioned, "In the Chinese hometown where I live, as soon as the sun goes down, the whole world turns pitch black." Having come to study in Singapore from a small Chinese province, that student also said, "It is so dazzling that I cannot open my eyes properly."

That international student also remarked, "I was deeply shocked that there is a country in the global village this bright and with such a flashy night view." Looking around the globe, there are still many people who do not even know electricity, and countries where electricity is scarce and rolling blackouts occur several times a day. It is also common for the lights in shopping center malls to go out in broad daylight.

When neighbors from around the globe first come to Korea, there are about 100 things that surprise them. One of them is precisely electricity. A certain international student from Central Asia once said this to me: "South Korea feels like an alien planet rather than a country on Earth. It's fascinating how Korea can be so different. Even if I return to my homeland, I don't think I'll adapt well. I envy Koreans living in such a bright country." That student still wants to come and live in Korea.

If you visit economically struggling countries, you realize just how remarkable South Korea is. If you go to a fruit shop in the early evening, it's confusing. There are many places that light up such dim lamps that it is hard to distinguish whether it is a pear or a guava. In countries where temperatures soar to around 50°C in mid-summer, citizens suffer indescribable hardships due to rolling blackouts. Riots even break out because of electricity. Events that are beyond imagination by Korean standards occur frequently.

[ⓒ Global Economic Times. 무단전재-재배포 금지]