By Kim Ji-eun

Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon met with Danish Ambassador to Korea Svend Olling at Busan City Hall on Oct. 19 to discuss exchanges and cooperation between Busan and Denmark in the fields of culture, arts, and renewable energy.

Denmark is a constitutional monarchy comprising the Jutland peninsula on the North Sea coast of northern Europe and the islands off its eastern coast. It covers an area of 43,394 square kilometers and has a population of about 5 million, with the capital city of Copenhagen. The country is famous for its dairy industry and has developed food, steel, chemical, and machinery industries.

Danish Ambassador Sven Ulling was appointed in May this year, and this is his fourth visit to Busan. In particular, he met with Mayor Park Hyung-joon for the first time in five months after the 'Climate Industry International Expo' in May.

On this day, Mayor Park first welcomed Ambassador Sven Oling to Busan. Ambassador Sven Oling expressed his pleasure to meet again and congratulated him on the recent success of the Busan International Film Festival, which screened more than 200 films.

In response, Mayor Park said, "I am happy that the 28th Busan International Film Festival has successfully concluded," and added, "This year, we especially tried to catch OTT content by establishing the 'Asian Content Awards & Global OTT Awards'."

In addition, Mayor Park added, "Our city is also planning to establish an art museum in a beautiful natural environment like the Louisiana Art Museum in Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark," and introduced the charm of Busan, which is rich in various cultural contents.

The Louisiana Museum of Art was founded in Copenhagen in 1966 and is known as a world-class art museum that efficiently collects artworks while preserving beautiful nature.

In this regard Ambassador Sven Oling said, "It would be great to have a beautiful art museum in Busan as planned." "My personal favorite art museum is the Louisiana Museum of Art, and I think it would be a good idea to hold a contemporary art exhibition on the theme of Busan at the Louisiana Museum of Art after the announcement of the 2030 World Expo venue."

"Our city is doing its best to convey the charm and aspirations of Busan to the world by joining forces with the private sector, government, and businesses until the last minute of the decision to host the 2030 Busan World Expo in November," said Mayor Park. "I hope you will support us to the end so that the 2030 World Expo can be held in Busan."

In conclusion, Mayor Park said, "Korea and Denmark have great national ambitions for a green and sustainable economy and green growth. Busan plans to increase its electricity independence rate from renewable energy to 50% by 2050 under the core strategy of carbon neutrality and low-carbon green smart city, and we look forward to cooperating with Denmark on the Green Growth Alliance."

"Korea and Denmark are important partners in securing clean energy and developing related industrial ecosystems," said Ambassador Sven Oling, adding, "We will do our best to cooperate with Busan for green growth, including the renewable energy sector."