Paju City Welcomes Hadano Citizen Goodwill Delegation from Japan... Hopes for Expanded Private Exchanges

Paju City in Gyeonggi Province announced on the 22nd that a citizen goodwill delegation from Hadano City, its sister city in Japan, visited Paju on the 17th to attend the opening ceremony of the Paju Kaesong Ginseng Festival and to promote private exchanges.

Paju City hosted a citizen goodwill delegation from Hadano City, its sister city in Japan, on the 17th. The delegation visited Paju to attend the opening ceremony of the Paju Kaesong Ginseng Festival and to promote private exchanges. Photo by Paju City

This visit was organized to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan, as well as the 20th anniversary of the sister city partnership between Paju and Hadano. A total of 14 members participated from three private organizations: the Shosei Branch of the Korean Residents Union in Japan, the Seisho Japan-Korea Friendship Association, and the Hadano-Paju Friendship Association.

The delegation, led by Gwak Geunnam, stayed in Paju for two days and one night from October 17 to 18. Their visit began with a meeting with Paju Mayor Kim Kyoungil, followed by tours of major peace tourism sites in Paju, including the Odusan Unification Observatory, the Paju Imjingak Peace Gondola, and Camp Greaves. They also attended the opening ceremony of the Paju Kaesong Ginseng Festival, strengthening the friendship between the two cities.

Gwak Geunnam, the head of the delegation, stated, "As various organizations have come together for this visit, I hope that private exchanges between Hadano and Paju will continue to expand and deepen in the future."

Paju Mayor Kim Kyoungil responded, "It is very meaningful to welcome the Hadano citizen goodwill delegation in this 20th anniversary year of our sister city partnership," adding, "I look forward to both cities continuing to develop together through ongoing private exchanges."

Meanwhile, Hadano City in Japan is an eco-friendly city located in the central-western part of Kanagawa Prefecture, about 60 kilometers from Tokyo. Since forming a sister city partnership in October 2005, Paju City has maintained active exchanges with Hadano in various fields, including youth, culture, sports, and administration.

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