1. The third forum on economic cooperation between the Republic of Korea and the three northeastern provinces of China took place in Shenyang, China, on July 18 to seek ways to support Korean companies’ bids to expand their presence in the markets of the Chinese provinces.

◦ The ROK delegation to the forum consisted of some 200 key government officials and entrepreneurs, including the Foreign Ministry’s Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs Ahn Chong-ghee, Consul-General to Shenyang Shin Bong-sup and Vice President of the Korea International Trade Association (KITA) Ahn Hyeon-ho. The Chinese side was composed of some 550 high-ranking government officials of the three provinces and business people.

2. The three northeastern provinces of China -- Jilin, Liaoning and Heilongjiang -- meet conditions as Northeast Asia’s hub for economic cooperation that connects Asia, Europe and the Pacific region. With the “Revitalize Northeast Area” plan implemented by the Chinese government since 2003 making tangible progress, the pace of the economic growth of the provinces has been exceeding the national average, demonstrating their great potential for growth.

◦ The three Chinese provinces, having seen their previous, nationalized enterprise-centered economic structure reformed through the “Revitalize Northeast Area” plan and pursued the liberation of their sectors of services, finance, logistics and distribution, are now emerging as one of China’s four pillars of economic growth.

* The four major pillars of economic growth of China are the Pearl River Delta in Guangdong province, the Yangtze River Delta in Jiangsu province, the Bohai region including Beijing and Tianjin, and the three northeastern provinces.

◦ Their geographical, historical and cultural proximity to the ROK, preference for things Korean, and enhanced income level all make the Chinese provinces promising consumer markets for Korean companies.

3. In particular, President Park Geun-hye of the ROK and President Xi Jinping of China, during their visits to each other’s countries in June 2013 and July 2014, respectively, highlighted the need to boost economic cooperation between provincial governments of the two countries as a new way forward in the ROK-China economic cooperation. In this light, the forum carries great significance as a regular opportunity to seek ways for cooperation with the three northeastern provinces of China.

4. On the sidelines of the forum, the ROK and the three Chinese provinces held a session on investment to provide each other with information on their respective investment environments. In addition, Korean and Chinese business people attended an exchange event to build networks with relevant government officials and leading businesses from the two sides.

◦ The corporate exchange event brought together representatives from a number of businesses in such promising sectors as medical equipment and service, bioscience, finance, logistics, distribution and information technology (IT). It is seen to have helped Korean companies in such sectors expand their presence in China.

◦ The ROK Consulate General in Shenyang and the governments of the three Chinese provinces signed a joint declaration containing the way forward in bilateral economic cooperation and the main sectors of cooperation over next ten years, thereby paving the way for future-oriented economic cooperation.

5. On the sidelines of the forum, Deputy Minister Ahn attended the opening ceremony of the “Korea Week” in Shenyang on July 18; had luncheon with the Shenyang Mayor; met with high-ranking government officials of the three provinces on July 18; and attended the dinner hosted by a high-level government official of Liaoning province. On those occasions, the two sides agreed to work together toward closer cooperative ties in economy. He also met with Korean businesses operating in Shenyang on July 18 to offer them words of encouragement.

◦ Deputy Minister Ahn noted that the forum, which marked the third of its kind this year, served as an invaluable opportunity for high-ranking government officials and business people of the three provinces to get together and explore ways for economic cooperation with the ROK. He proposed that the forum be made more productive and thereby into a consultative mechanism to deepen the ROK-China ties and cooperation in Northeast Asia through.

◦ He asked the governments of the three northeastern provinces of China to pay attention and render support to some 80,000 Korean residents, some 4,500 Korea companies and the Consulate General, as the presence of Korean companies in the provinces contributes to the development of entire Northeast Asia.

6. The forum, together with the session on investment environment, the corporate exchange event, is seen to have helped pave the way for closer economic cooperation with the three northeastern provinces of China -- an important region in terms of China’s sustainable economic development and stability as well as with great potential for growth into a Northeast Asian hub.

7. The ROK Foreign Ministry will continue to step up economic cooperation with the three Chinese provinces and further broaden its horizon of cooperation with other provincial governments of China based on its experience gained through the forum on economic cooperation with the three northeastern provinces of China.

                           Spokesperson and Deputy Minister for Public Relations of MOFA

* unofficial translation