A series of Korean cultural events has also been launched in France to compliment President Park Geun-hye's visit this week.
From exhibitions and performances... to what's being billed as the world's largest K-pop concert,... Lee Ji-won provides a glimpse of this promotional extravaganza.
K-pop stars including SHINee, Block B and more were in France on Thursday night to kick off the weeklong KCON festival.
The concert hall in Paris was jammed with K-pop fans from around Europe,... who were singing along and screaming themselves hoarse.
Billed as the world's largest K-pop concert, it was organized to celebrate the 130th anniversary of diplomatic ties between Korea and France.
And in a sign of the significance of the occasion, the stage was momentarily given over to a special VIP guest -- President Park Geun-hye.
The Korean leader is in France on a state visit, and she used the event... to highlight the importance of cultural events and exchanges between the two countries.
In her remarks, she said that it was K-pop events like these that are helping to make Korean culture known to people around the world.
At the event, part concert, part expo, she and pop group SHINee even took a moment to sample some Korean treats.


"I think, with global stars SHINee introducing Korean desserts like bungeoppang ,... their popularity is sure to be explosive."
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KCON is just one of the cultural events organized to coincide with President Park's four-day stay in France.
The convention is a seven-day music and cultural event being held in nine major cities including Paris, Nantes and Nice to highlight both traditional and contemporary aspects of Korean culture.

Other cultural events during the president's visit include events giving French people a taste of Korean dramas and movies, fashion and food... and festivals featuring classical and contemporary Korean music such as pansori musical storytelling and samulnori percussion performances.
Lee Ji-won, Arirang News.