A NEAR delegation headed by Secretary-General Hong Jong-kyoung visited the Embassy of Uzbekistan in Korea on July 17(Tue) 2017 and met with the newly appointed Ambassador Vitaly Fen. At the meeting, Secretary-General Hong introduced the activities of NEAR and NEAR Associate Membership, which was approved at the 11th General Assembly in Irkutsk, Russia last year. Secretary-General Hong then requested the ambassador to recommend regional governments in Uzbekistan which may be interested in NEAR. Prior to the meeting with the ambassador, the delegation had a luncheon meeting with the Korea-Uzbekistan exchange of the Association of Daegu-Gyeongbuk International Cooperation (head: Moon Shin-ja) to congratulate the appointment of Ambassador Vitaly Fen and the official  opening of the Embassy of Uzbekistan.

The delegation later met with Kim Young-ho, currently the Chair Professor of the Academy of Korean Studies and former minister of the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy, over a formal dinner to listen to  his recommendations regarding the development of NEAR. Professor Kim is a contributor to the establishment of NEAR.