Global Summit Gathers World Leaders on
Peaceful Reconciliation of the Korean Peninsula
Prestigious Sunhak Peace Prize Laureates to be Honored
The upcoming World Summit 2022 (Summit for Peace on the Korean Peninsula) will gather world leaders and a worldwide virtual audience around topics related to peaceful reconciliation on the Korean Peninsula.
The Feb. 10-13 World Summit 2022, held in Seoul, South Korea, is sponsored by the Universal Peace Federation (UPF) and the Kingdom of Cambodia. It will feature keynote speakers from around the world on a range of topics related to the peaceful reconciliation of the Korean Peninsula. Many speakers are from the 157 countries
that have diplomatic ties with both North and South Korea.
World Summit 2022 is hosted by UPF Co-Founder Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon, and co-chaired by Samdech Hun Sen, Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Cambodia, and H.E. Ban Ki-moon, former United Nations Secretary-General (2007-2016).
A highlight of the Summit is the 5th Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony, to be held on Feb. 12, which will honor Oxford University vaccinologist Prof. Sarah Gilbert and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance for their efforts to serve humanity during the COVID-19 pandemic.
H.E. Hun Sen will be honored with the 2nd Sunhak Peace Prize Founder’s Award, which is given to recognize distinguished world leaders who demonstrate significant accomplishments for peace throughout their careers.
The Sunhak Peace Prize, founded in 2013 by Dr. Moon to honor the legacy of her late husband Rev. Dr. Sun Myung Moon, is intended to “find and scale up the best peace solutions we can find,” organizers said at a Feb. 7 press conference to announce the 2022 Laureates. Speakers included H.E. Chring Botum Rangsay, Cambodian Ambassador to South Korea; H.E. Jose Manuel Barroso, chairman of the Sunhak Peace Prize; and Sunhak Peace Prize leaders, Washington Times Chairman Thomas P. McDevitt, Dr. Nam In-seog and Dr. Yun Young-ho. Laureates receive a cash prize, medal and plaque.
Adhering to South Korea’s COVID-19 safety guidelines, distinguished participants from around the world will gather in Seoul for World Summit 2022, which begins with the Opening Plenary at the Republic of Korea National Assembly on Friday, Feb. 11, 2022 (KST). Millions more will participate in the Summit via a high-tech hybrid format.
“The Korean War began more than 70 years ago and concluded with an armistice, not a peace treaty,” said UPF Chairman Dr. Thomas G. Walsh. “The Korean Peninsula is populated by a people with thousands of years of common history, culture and language. Is it not possible to resolve this conflict and bring about the peaceful reunification of the peninsula? We will seek answers to these questions at the Summit,” Dr. Walsh said.
In addition to the 5th Sunhak Peace Prize Award Ceremony, World Summit 2022 will hold the Global Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Interreligious Peace Summit and the Rally for Peace on the Korean Peninsula that will involve more than one million people.
Moreover, before and during World Summit 2022, organizers will convene high-level sessions around the work of UPF’s peacebuilding associations. These include:
- International Summit Council for Peace (ISCP) and the International Association of First Ladies for Peace (IAFLP)
- International Association of Parliamentarians for Peace (IAPP)
- Interreligious Association for Peace and Development (IAPD)
- International Association for Peace and Economic Development (IAED)
- International Media Association for Peace (IMAP)
- International Association of Academicians for Peace (IAAP)
- International Association of Arts and Culture for Peace (IAACP)
World Summit 2022 is part of UPF’s ongoing series of peacebuilding activities, which are held under the theme of mutual prosperity, interdependence and shared universal values.
UPF, an NGO in General Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations, is known for its Rally of Hope series, the International Leadership Conference series, and, since early 2021, the Forum series of Think Tank 2022. The latter project was created to engage more than 2,000 global thought leaders on how to achieve a breakthrough for peace on the Korean Peninsula. (Details about Think Tank 2022 Forums can be found at UPF.org)
