On December 19, 2024,  at the invitation of the Northeast Asian Research Center of Jilin University, the Northeast Asian Studies College, and the Institute of North Korean and South Korean Studies of Jilin University, Professor Hong Ik-pyo, Distinguished Professor at the Graduate School of Public Administration of Dongguk University, former floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, and former Chair of the Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, delivered an academic lecture. The lecture was chaired by Professor Zhang Huizhi, Deputy Director of the Northeast Asian Research Center, and was attended by faculty and students of the Northeast Asian Studies College.

The lecture received an enthusiastic response. Faculty and students raised numerous questions regarding South Korean domestic politics and party relations. Professor Hong Ik-pyo’s patient responses and insightful perspectives were warmly applauded by the audience. At the end of the lecture, Professor Zhang Huizhi summarized the event and expressed gratitude to Professor Hong Ik-pyo.

On December 20, Professor Zhang Huizhi, Deputy Director of the Northeast Asian Research Center and Director of the Institute of North Korean and South Korean Studies, together with several faculty members, held an academic symposium with Professor Hong Ik-pyo.

During the symposium, Professor Hong Ik-pyo and the faculty engaged in in-depth discussions on hotspot issues on the Korean Peninsula, domestic politics and party relations in South Korea, and China–US relations under a second Trump administration. The symposium not only deepened academic exchanges between scholars of the two countries but also further strengthened bilateral cooperation between Jilin University and Dongguk University.

Some faculty members from the Northeast Asian Research Center and the Institute of North Korean and South Korean Studies also attended the symposium.