The symposium on the challenging theme of "Democracy and Security Assurance in the Age of Globalization" was cosponsored by The Gorbachev Foundation and the Ryukyu Simposha.

View of Panel Discussion
Former President Gorbachev and his daughter impressed by the Okinawa traditional dance performance.
The Institute for International Socio-Economic Studies (IISE) held its Globalization Forum 2003 in the main hall of the Naha City Citizens' Hall, Okinawa Prefecture on November 11, 2003. The event was cosponsored by The Gorbachev Foundation and the Ryukyu Simposha and attracted the participation of personalities working in the field from six countries - Japan, Russia, US, China, Korea and Malaysia. In the morning session, the lecturers delivered their speeches on the theme of "Democracy and Security Assurance in the Age of Globalization" while the afternoon session consisted of a debate on the war in Iraq, support for Iraq's reconstruction, improvement of the United Nations and the Northeast Asian situation, with Mr. Soichiro Tahara acting as the coordinator. As many as some 1,100 people, mainly from Okinawa, had assembled in the audience to listen with keen interest to the debate that lasted for a good six hours.
After the forum, a reception took place in the form of a party at the invitation of the Mayor of Naha City in the Shikinaen Garden, a site designated as part of the world heritage. The speakers had an opportunity to deepen their friendship with the 400 invited guests while enjoying traditional Okinawa art.

Speakers and Discussants
(1) Mikhail Gorbachev (former President of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics)
(2) Mahathir bin Mohamad (Malaysia's former prime minister)
(3) Zbigniew Brezinski (former Assistant for National Security Affairs of the US)
(4) Kenneth Quinones (former analyst on North Korean affairs with the State Department of the US)
(5) Kyung-Won Kim (former Korean Ambassador to the US and Korean Ambassador to United Nations)
(6) Jiang Mingjun (Global Compact Center)
(7) Tatsuo Arima (The Representative of the Government of Japan)
(8) Keiichi Inamine (Okinawa's governor)
(9) Takeshi Onaga (Naha Mayor)

Coordinator
Sooichiro Tawara (Journalist)
* Taking part via satellite TV.

Gorbachev, former President of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics
Mahathir, Malaysia's former prime minister
Tatsuo Arima, the Representative of the Government of Japan