By Diplomacy Journal Kayla Lee

Ambassador of Ukraine to the Republic of Korea Dmytro Ponomarenko and the Ukrainian Economic Mission met with Incheon City Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok at Incheon City Hall on March 24 to discuss cooperation.

The meeting was aimed at expanding economic exchanges and laying the groundwork for practical cooperation between Incheon and Ukraine.

The Ukrainian economic mission consisted of government officials from the Ministry of Infrastructure of Ukraine, including Iryna Tsymbal, chairman of the President Yushchenko Foundation, and Viktoriia Parchevska, Chief Specialist of International Cooperation and Investments Office of Ukraine, as well as private businessmen.

“Incheon is a city with innovative economic policies and global logistics and industrial infrastructure, and I am confident that it can become an important partner in Ukraine's post-war recovery process,” said Ambassador Ponomarenko. ”I hope that Ukrainian companies will learn about Korea's advanced technologies and industrial know-how through cooperation with Incheon, and that economic cooperation between local governments will expand.”

During the meeting, the two sides exchanged views on ▲ information sharing on areas of mutual interest such as ports and logistics, smart cities, and new technologies ▲ ways to expand business-to-business exchanges and investments ▲ and the possibility of Incheon's participation in Ukraine's reconstruction projects, and agreed to continue to communicate and cooperate to achieve practical results in the future.

Mayor Yoo Jung-bok said, “I am impressed that the Ukrainian government and companies are actively moving toward reconstruction even under the difficult circumstances of war.”

He added, “Incheon is a city with the capacity to cooperate in various fields such as ports, logistics, and smart cities, and we will actively consider establishing practical cooperation with Ukraine.”