The Republic of Korea in the G20: a guide for Model G20 delegates

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The Republic of Korea (Korea for short, often nicknamed South Korea) is one of the G20's 19 member countries, which sit alongside the European Union and the African Union. It hosted the G20 summit in Seoul in 2010 and is due to hold the presidency and host the leaders' summit again in 2028, after the United Kingdom in 2027. This guide reflects official sources as of 13 October 2026.

At a glance

UN member (1991): admitted on 17 September 1991. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea is a separate UN member and is not in the G20.
Size (2025): about 51.7 million people and a GDP of about US$1.87 trillion (World Bank).
Leaders (2026): President Lee Jae Myung (in office since 4 June 2025) leads the government; Prime Minister Han Seong-sook (since 1 July 2026) is his chief aide in running the ministries.
G20 host (2010): the Seoul Summit, 11 to 12 November 2010.
Next presidency (2028): the official sources checked give no date, city or theme.
Groupings (2025): chair of APEC and of MIKTA; not a member of the G7 or the EU.

The Republic of Korea's G20 story

Korea chaired the G20 in 2010. The G20 Information Centre's list shows the four earlier summits were in Washington, London, Pittsburgh and Toronto, so Seoul was the first leaders' summit held outside Europe and North America. In January 2010 the then President, Lee Myung-bak, presented Korea as a bridge: "As a country that has made the transition from one that receives aid to one that gives aid, we understand well what is involved in making aid work."

The Seoul declaration said the summit delivered "a modernized IMF" giving more representation to dynamic emerging markets and developing countries, "instruments to strengthen global financial safety nets" and "the Seoul Development Consensus for Shared Growth", which says "there is no single formula for development success." On IMF quotas, leaders pledged to "work to complete" the changes by 2012. These were political commitments, not binding law. The declaration also warned that "uncoordinated policy actions will only lead to worse outcomes for all."

Since then Korea co-chaired the Finance Track's International Financial Architecture working group with France in 2023, and the G20 study group on global imbalances with Australia in 2026.

Now it is preparing for a second turn. The Johannesburg declaration of November 2025 commits members to meeting "in the Republic of Korea in 2028." Today's President, Lee Jae Myung, calls Korea "a country that helped build the G20" and says it "seeks to once again assume the Presidency in 2028, marking the twentieth anniversary of the G20 Leaders' Summit." In January 2026 the foreign ministry said it plans "steady preparations" starting that year, framing the job around economic security and trade.

What the Republic of Korea wants from the G20

Open trade. Lee told the 2025 summit: "The revitalization of the World Trade Organization serves the interests of all nations."
Secure energy and supply chains. Citing instability in the Middle East, Korea's Sherpa said in 2026 that "discussions should also take place at the G20 level on ways to stabilize global supply chains." In 2025 Lee described Korea as chair of the Minerals Security Partnership.
Debt and development. Lee warned that developing economies "are constrained by excessive debt burdens" and backs reform of the multilateral development banks, aiming for "inclusive growth" in which "no country is left behind."
Fair AI. Lee told the G20 that "the advancement of artificial intelligence (AI) must provide fair opportunities for all nations and all peoples."
Climate. The Prime Minister's Office says Korea plans to cut emissions "by 40%, by 2030, compared to the levels in 2018", on the way to carbon neutrality by 2050. Lee told the 2025 summit that Korea has also established a 2035 Nationally Determined Contribution, whose figures are not covered here.
Fairer institutions. Lee told the UN in 2026 that Korea supports Security Council reform "so that it operates in a more effective, democratic, and accountable manner."

Alliances and groupings

Korea works with Mexico, Indonesia, Türkiye and Australia in MIKTA, whose leaders at Rio in 2024 called it "a cross-regional partnership" and backed "the G20 as the premier forum for international economic cooperation". Korea chaired APEC in 2025, hosting the leaders' meeting in Gyeongju. It is not a G7 member, but France invited it to the Évian summit in June 2026 as a partner country, alongside India. With the EU it has a Free Trade Agreement, and the two signed a Digital Trade Agreement in June 2026.

With the United States, Korea's foreign ministry says the two will cooperate "as members of the Troika" through 2028. South Africa has said the US told it that it would forego the troika format during its 2026 presidency, so treat the ministry's wording as Korea's view.

The Republic of Korea and India

Diplomatic relations date from 10 December 1973 and were raised to a "Special Strategic Partnership" in 2015. President Lee's state visit of 19 to 21 April 2026 was, in the joint text's words, "the earliest visit to India by a Korean President after assuming office." The leaders' Joint Strategic Vision agrees "to enhance the collaboration in the multilateral fora, including the G20, in view of the ROK's Presidency of the Group in 2028."

India's embassy in Seoul puts trade at USD 25.6 billion in 2025, of which USD 19.2 billion was Indian imports. The two have set a goal, not a forecast, of USD 50 billion by 2030, and aim to conclude talks on upgrading their CEPA trade agreement by the first half of 2027. Korea has joined the International Solar Alliance, which India and France launched in 2015, and both back "comprehensive UN reforms including Security Council expansion". For students, the vision welcomes the Global Korea Scholarship for Indian recipients and links between India's 23 IITs and ten Korean national universities.

Recent developments

22 to 23 November 2025: at the Johannesburg summit, which the US did not attend, Lee spoke in all three sessions and met Prime Minister Modi.
15 to 16 December 2025: Korea's foreign ministry recorded that most G20 members, including Korea, supported the US presidency's "back to basics" approach.
14 March 2026: Kim Hee-sang became Korea's G20 Sherpa.
15 to 17 June 2026: Lee attended the G7 summit at Évian as a partner.
22 September 2026: at the UN, Lee said Korea "will build the 'Global AI Hub' platform".
Next: the Miami leaders' summit is scheduled for 14 to 15 December 2026.

Representing the Republic of Korea at a Model G20

Get the name right. Your placard should read Republic of Korea or Korea; use "South Korea" only informally.
Play the bridge-builder. Korea moved from receiving aid to giving it, so broker compromises between advanced and developing economies. Phrase positions as shared gains, for example: The Republic of Korea believes a predictable trading environment serves every member.
Likely allies. MIKTA partners, especially Australia on imbalances and energy; India on trade and solar power; the EU on trade; the US presidency on growth and innovation.
Likely red lines. By our reasoning: text that weakens the WTO-centred trading system, threatens energy supply routes, shuts developing countries out of the benefits of AI or weakens the G20 before Korea's 2028 turn.
Think like the 2028 host. A future host needs a G20 that keeps working, so when talks stall, propose follow-up work rather than letting them collapse.
Quote primary texts. The Seoul Leaders' Declaration (2010), Lee's Johannesburg statements (2025), the India-ROK Joint Strategic Vision (2026) and Lee's UN address (2026, an unofficial translation).

What to do next

Start with how to write a Model G20 position paper, then read how a G20 leaders' declaration is agreed. For background, see the G20 Sherpa Track and Finance Track explained and the 2026 G20 presidency explained.

Model G20 is One Young India's simulation of the G20 summit for students, held as a three-day residential summit at FLAME University.

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