By Diplomacy Journal Lee Kap-soo

A video of the Italian Ambassador to Korea Emilia Gatto wearing Hanbok and giving a Korean speech at an event celebrating the National Foundation Day of Italy has belatedly become a hot topic online.

A video of the ‘Italian Republic Day Commemoration Ceremony’ held at the Italian Ambassador’s residence in Hannam-dong, Yongsan-gu, Seoul on June 2 was uploaded to Italian broadcaster Alberto Mondi’s YouTube channel. This event is a national event commemorating Italy’s independence and establishment of the Republic.

On this day, Italian Ambassador Emilia Gatto appeared in a hanbok embroidered with the Italian tricolore, drawing attention. The hanbok jacket she wore was white, the skirt was red, and she wore a green belt, reminiscent of the tricolore.

Ambassador Gatto went up to the podium and gave a welcoming speech in broken Korean, saying, “Here at the Italian Embassy, we all work as a team,” and “I want to introduce Korea’s technology and history to Italy.” Alberto said, “The ambassador spoke in Korean from beginning to end.”

In a subsequent interview, Ambassador Kato said, “It’s so pretty,” and “It symbolizes the friendship between Italy and Korea to me,” about the meaning of wearing hanbok instead of traditional Italian clothing on the National Foundation Day event.

Regarding the reason for giving the speech in Korean, she said, “I like Korean. Through language, I can discover various aspects of Korean society, culture, and Korean people.” She added, “There is no case in the world where a single person created a letter. I became a fan of King Sejong.”

Ambassador Kato concluded by saying, “Strong soft power such as K-pop is permeating Europe,” and “I think it is important to introduce various Korean cultures that are not yet widely known to the world.” She continued, “On the other hand, Italy is well known for its history and cultural heritage, but it is not well known as a technological powerhouse. Changing this perception is a very important task.”