{"id":2199525,"date":"2022-11-22T09:06:42","date_gmt":"2022-11-22T09:06:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/?p=2199525"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:10:56","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:10:56","slug":"saudi-arabian-megaproject-promises-windfall-for-south-korea-but-carries-risks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/11\/saudi-arabian-megaproject-promises-windfall-for-south-korea-but-carries-risks\/","title":{"rendered":"Saudi Arabian megaproject promises windfall for South Korea but carries risks"},"content":{"rendered":"
For South Korean government officials and businesses, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman\u2019s <\/span>visit<\/span><\/a> last week was like an early Christmas \u2014 and not simply because he <\/span>booked<\/span><\/a> 400 rooms at Lotte Hotel Seoul for two weeks for his entourage, including a $16,449-per-night suite for himself.<\/span><\/p>\n The visit marked bin Salman\u2019s first to South Korea since 2019, and President Yoon Suk-yeol\u2019s top priority was to seek greater cooperation between Seoul and Riyadh, including Saudia Arabia\u2019s futuristic $500 billion desert city megaproject <\/span>Neom<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Riyadh envisions Neom will be <\/span>44 times larger than Seoul<\/span><\/a>, and many South Korean media outlets have voiced hope for a \u201c<\/span>second Middle Eastern boom<\/span><\/a>\u201d akin to Saudi Arabia\u2019s rapid development in the 1970s, which spurred close cooperation between the two countries and helped accelerate South Korea\u2019s own rapid development.<\/span><\/p>\n Even so, this utopian project is far from a sure bet, and working so closely with a country known for systematic human rights violations like Saudi Arabia poses risks to South Korea\u2019s reputation and undermines its pledge to promote freedom and democracy, though it seems few policymakers or business leaders have any qualms about paying this price.<\/span><\/p>\n