Korea-Russia Far East Siberia Subcommittee... Agreement Signed for 'Primorsky Krai Industrial Complex Development' Project Implementation

Laying the Foundation for Expanding SMEs' Entry into the Far East Region... Discussing Support Measures for Korean Companies' Entry and Activities in Far East Healthcare, Medical, and Agriculture
Subcommittee Name to Change to 'Far East Arctic' from Next Meeting

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] On the 18th, Kim Geon, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, held consultations with Alexander Krutikov, First Deputy Minister of Russia’s Ministry for the Development of the Russian Far East and Arctic, on ways to enhance practical cooperation centered on the Far East region at the Korea-Russia Far East Siberia Subcommittee.

At the request of the Russian side, which actively hopes for cooperation in the Arctic region, both parties agreed to rename the subcommittee from the ‘Far East Siberia’ Subcommittee to the ‘Far East Arctic’ Subcommittee starting from the next 15th meeting and to begin full-scale discussions on cooperation in the Arctic region.

Deputy Minister Kim emphasized the importance of cooperation with the Far East region, which accounts for half of the total trade and human exchanges between the two countries. He evaluated that as a result of Russia’s efforts to attract investment through policies such as the priority development zones and Korea’s steady investment response, recently, Korean small and medium-sized enterprises have been expanding their entry into the Far East region. In response, Deputy Minister Krutikov replied that efforts to expand practical cooperation between the two countries in the Far East and Arctic regions would continue to restore trade and human exchanges between the two countries, which had been contracted due to COVID-19.

Both sides welcomed the signing of the ‘Agreement on the Implementation of the Project for the Development of the Korea-Russia Economic Cooperation Industrial Complex in Primorsky Krai (Korea Land and Housing Corporation (LH) - Russian Far East Development Corporation)’ on the occasion of this subcommittee meeting and agreed to actively cooperate to ensure the successful progress of the project, which is one of the nine key cooperation projects. Deputy Minister Kim Geon stated, "The industrial complex can serve as a foundation for expanding industrial infrastructure investment cooperation in the Far East region between the two countries, including the entry of our small and medium-sized enterprises," and requested active cooperation not only from the Russian central government but also from the Primorsky Krai local government regarding the establishment of the industrial complex.

Deputy Minister Krutikov responded, "The Korea-Russia Primorsky Krai Industrial Complex is a successful example of practical progress in cooperation between the two countries in the Far East region," and pledged to actively cooperate to ensure the successful promotion of the industrial complex project.

In addition, both sides agreed to cooperate to ensure smooth collaboration and visible results in other fields such as health and medical care, agriculture and fisheries, transportation, logistics and energy, innovation, and the Arctic.

Deputy Minister Kim Geon evaluated Russia’s efforts to establish an international medical special zone in the Far East region and requested that domestic procedures in Russia, including amendments to laws related to the special zone, progress swiftly so that Korean medical institutions can smoothly enter the special zone. He also conveyed concerns of Korean agricultural companies operating in Primorsky Krai regarding Russia’s planned grain export restrictions to be implemented in the first half of next year and requested minimizing the impact of these measures on Korean companies’ activities.

Both sides evaluated that the ‘Korea-Russia Local Cooperation Forum,’ launched in November 2018 and successfully held twice, has established itself as a representative cooperation platform between local governments in the Far East region and Korean local governments. They expressed hope that the forum will continue to contribute to strengthening exchanges and cooperation at the local level between the two countries in various fields such as economy, trade, education, and culture. In particular, Deputy Minister Krutikov expressed hope that not only Far East but also Arctic regional local governments will participate in the ‘3rd Korea-Russia Local Cooperation Forum’ to be held in Ulsan next year. Deputy Minister Kim Geon welcomed this and hoped that the 3rd forum, held in conjunction with the extended 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations next year, will serve as an opportunity to revitalize exchanges between the private sectors and local governments of the two countries, which have been somewhat contracted due to COVID-19.

Meanwhile, the chief representatives of both sides signed a memorandum of agreement at the end of the subcommittee meeting, which included the results of this meeting and future cooperation directions for the Far East and Arctic regions. A Foreign Ministry official evaluated, "Despite restrictions on face-to-face exchanges due to COVID-19, this subcommittee meeting served as an opportunity to expand and deepen the breadth and depth of practical cooperation between the two countries by adopting a memorandum of agreement reflecting concrete cooperation directions such as the signing of the implementation contract for the Primorsky Krai industrial complex project, progress in practical cooperation in the Far East region, and expansion of cooperation into the Arctic region."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.