Detail

`The China-Korea Submarine Cable network, linking Taean on the Taean Peninsula of Korea, and Qingdao on the Shandong Peninsula of China, is the first international information superhighway built between the two countries. Korea and China have enjoyed brisk mutual exchanges in various sectors, including the political, economic, cultural, and social areas, since the establishment of their diplomatic relations on August 24, 1992. In order to cope with the sharp increase in bilateral communication volume arising from exchanges and to provide state-of-the-art telecommunication service, the two countries jointly drafted a plan for the construction of a submarine cable system and embarked on laying 549 kilometers of the cable with a maximum capacity of 15,120 simultaneous telephone calls on May 18,1993, slated to open for service on February 8,1996. In a related development, a Russia-Japan-Korea Submarine Cable network has been in operations of a 7,560-line cable connecting the three countries on January 31,1995. By marking possible such high-tech telecommunication service as international telephone calls, facsimile transmissions, and video tele-conferencing between the two countries, the China-Korea Submarine Cable network is expected to make a great contribution to more expended exchanges between Korean and China and to further improve telecommunication service through securing a state-of-the-art telecommunicationas system. The Ministry of Information and Communication in issuing this commemorative postage stamp in hopes that the opening of service for the undersea cable system will provide faster and more efficient telecommunication services, and that it will serve as a springboard for the country to embrace the rapid onset of the information society in the 21st centruy. `