Prime Minister Kevin Rudd today welcomed the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on education between Australia and the Republic of Korea.
This important signing will promote collaboration between the Australian and Korean governments to further strengthen education ties.
It will provide a framework for closer cooperation between Australia's Department of Education Employment and Workplace relations and Korea's Ministry of Education, Science and Technology to exchange information on education challenges and identify priorities for practical cooperation.
Korea is Australia's third-largest source country for international students, with more than 34,000 Korean students enrolled at Australian institutions in 2007.
There are also strong links between Australian and Korean universities in areas such as student and staff exchanges and academic research.
The Prime Minister also attended today an e-lecture given by Australian National University (ANU) Vice-chancellor, Professor Ian Chubb, to students at Yonsei University in Seoul.
The lecture demonstrated the significant potential for the delivery of English-language e-lectures and e-classes by Australian institutions and service providers to students in Korea and more broadly in the region.
The Prime Minister welcomed the establishment of a Korea Institute at the ANU, to be launched formally on 15 August, and plans to establish an Australia Institute at Yonsei University.