"Responding with 'Wihayeo' in Korean... Macron Shares Selfie with Jeon Jihyun and Felix"

140 Cultural and Business Leaders Gather for Korea-France 140th Anniversary Dinner

French President Emmanuel Macron has released a photo taken with Korean celebrities attending a dinner commemorating the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and France.

President Macron and his wife are taking a selfie with actors Jeon Ji-hyun, Jeon Jong-seo, Noh Sang-hyun, singer Psy, and Felix. President Macron's SNS.

In the early morning of April 4, President Macron posted a photo on his Instagram. The picture features actors Jeon Ji-hyun, Jeon Jong-seo, Noh Sang-hyun, singer Psy, and Felix of Stray Kids taking a selfie with President Macron and his wife, creating a warm and friendly atmosphere. Although President Macron did not add any captions, he tagged the official Stray Kids account, Felix, and singer Psy in the photo.

According to a video released on April 3 through official channels such as 'Lee Jaemyung TV' on YouTube, the atmosphere at the event was lively and amicable. Earlier that day, President Lee Jaemyung and President Macron held a summit and reached a dramatic agreement to elevate the bilateral relationship to a global strategic partnership. The two leaders set a goal of achieving an "era of one million people-to-people exchanges." They also pledged cooperation in the cultural technology and e-sports sectors and reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen the trust built through K-pop and K-content.

More than 140 distinguished guests from both countries attended the subsequent luncheon. The attendees included Felix, who is currently serving as an honorary ambassador for France and other cultural figures, as well as Lee Jaeyong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics, Chung Euisun, Chairman of Hyundai Motor Group, and Lee Boo-jin, President & CEO of Hotel Shilla. Other notable attendees were painter Lee Bae, artist Choi Yetai, broadcaster Ida Daussy, Kwang Hyung Lee, President of KAIST, Dong-Sup Yoon, President of Yonsei University, Moon Si-yeon, President of the Korea-France Association, and Ban Ki-moon, the 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations.

Felix, a member of the group Stray Kids, posted a photo taken with Lee Jae-yong, Chairman of Samsung Electronics, on SNS. Felix's Instagram.

Korean cuisine was served at the event. President Lee offered a toast, quoting the famous French writer Victor Hugo: "The future is a door, and the past is its key," expressing his hopes that the trust and history of cooperation built over the past 140 years between the two nations would serve as the key to unlocking a brighter future. President Macron responded to the toast by saying "Wihayeo" ("Cheers") in Korean.

President Macron also greeted the attendees in Korean, saying "Annyeong hasimnikka, yeoreobun" ("Hello, everyone"), and then referred to author Han Kang’s Nobel Literature Prize acceptance speech in 2024, where she spoke of "the golden thread that connects our hearts," using it as a metaphor for language and emotion. He continued, "I would like to borrow Han Kang's metaphor of the golden thread to describe the friendship between our two countries on this 140th anniversary," and extended an invitation to President Lee to attend the Film and Video Summit to be held in France this September.

French President Emmanuel Macron and Brigitte Macron, who visited Korea on a state visit, are having a social dinner with President Lee Jae-myung and First Lady Kim Hye-kyung at Sangchunjae, the Blue House, on the 2nd. Photo by Yonhap News

President Macron said, "Between our two countries, there is now a relationship of trust and cooperation, and above all, there are many similarities and our friendship is strong," adding, "Everything we are building now is for our values and for the world we believe in."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.