Seoul, a historically cultural city, has been the capital of Korea for more than 600 years since the Chosun Dynasty was founded in 1392. About a quarter of the total Korean population lives in Seoul, the center for politics, economy, and culture.
Among the Northeast Asian cities which will play a key role in the 21^st century, the so-called Pacific Era, Seoul is situated at the crossroads of two geopolitically very significant economic axes; it is in the very center of the Korean Peninsula linking the Pacific region to Eurasia, and the center of the strategic belt of Japan, Korea and China across the Yellow Sea. As the center of the BESETO (Beijing-Seoul-Tokyo) economic belt, Seoul will surely make major contributions to the economic development of Northeast Asia in the 21^st century.

Tucked away in northeast Asia, Korea is a nation that boasts a fast growing economy and a lifestyle that brings together the old and the new. Once known simply as a quiet nation in the East, the peninsula now hardly sleeps as it pulsates with life and commerce. Numerous branch offices of international corporations and businesses can be found throughout the country, as well as most western franchises. Despite all such enthusiasm for modernization and globalization, Koreans still greatly value their 5,000 years of history and the Confucian philosophy that has governed the lives of their ancestors. Many global events take place here annually, with the 2002 FIFA World Cup Soccer Games being the most recent.