Busan Strengthens Exchange and Cooperation with Sister City Dubai

September 30: 2024 Eurasia Urban Diplomacy Delegation, Vice Mayor Lee Joonseung Visits Dubai

Meeting with Consul General in Dubai... Discussing Areas of Cooperation and Expanding Support for Busan Companies

Meeting with Dubai Mayor... Request for Strengthened Partnership as a Global Hub City and Sister City

Busan City, as the city delegation of the '2024 Eurasia City Diplomacy Corps,' had Vice Mayor for Administrative Affairs Lee Joonseung meet with the Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Dubai in the morning and the Mayor of Dubai in the afternoon on the 30th to discuss cooperation measures.

Busan's Eurasia City Diplomacy Delegation meeting with Dawood Abdulrahman Al Hajiri, Mayor of Dubai.

The 'Eurasia City Diplomacy Corps' is a public diplomacy project that conducts civilian diplomatic activities with citizens in various fields, taking into account the characteristics of the cities visited each year.

This year, starting with the departure ceremony on September 20 and continuing until October 2, the delegation carried out public diplomacy activities over 13 days and 11 nights in Almaty, Kazakhstan; Tashkent and Samarkand, Uzbekistan; and Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE).

First, in the morning at the Consulate General of the Republic of Korea in Dubai, Vice Mayor Lee met with Consul General Lee Beomchan, who was appointed in August this year, congratulated him on his appointment, and expressed gratitude for the consulate's support and cooperation in promoting the 'Eurasia City Diplomacy Corps' project.

After receiving an overview of Dubai's political, economic, social, and religious environment from the Consul General, they exchanged opinions on possible areas of cooperation between Korea and Dubai and on the entry of Busan companies into the region. In particular, Vice Mayor Lee requested special cooperation in expanding support for Busan businesses.

In response, the Consul General emphasized that, from a geopolitical perspective, Busan has advantages comparable to Dubai as it connects the sea and the continent, and that when the Arctic route era opens in 2030, Busan will become a central port city.

He further stated that it is important to develop Busan into an attractive city by realizing its vision as a global hub city and international financial city, and that he would take a keen interest in supporting and cooperating with Busan, which is a sister city of Dubai.

Later in the afternoon, at Dubai City Hall, Vice Mayor Lee met with Mayor Dawood Abdulrahman Al Hajri to share Busan's efforts and preparations to become a 'global hub city' and requested continued cooperation between the sister cities of Busan and Dubai.

Vice Mayor Lee mentioned that Busan has the world's largest port, with a developed maritime trade and logistics industry centered around Busan Port, and that more than two million tourists visit annually, highlighting the many similarities with Dubai.

He further explained that Busan is currently pursuing the enactment of a special law to become a global hub city like Dubai, and is steadily developing related infrastructure such as the construction of a new airport capable of 24-hour operation and the redevelopment of North Port, thus meeting the requirements to become a hub city.

In response, Mayor Al Hajri welcomed the Busan delegation and emphasized that many companies from both cities are already interacting and that there will be significant areas for future cooperation. He also expressed hope for an even more advanced cooperative relationship as sister cities.

Vice Mayor Lee Joonseung expressed gratitude for the mayor's welcome and support, saying, "Dubai's example will serve as a good model for Busan's successful leap as a 'global hub city,' and I hope Busan and Dubai will open the future together. I ask for your continued cooperation and support," concluding the meeting.

Dubai has maintained steady exchanges with Busan since establishing a sister city relationship in 2006. Dubai has grown into a global hub city connecting Europe and Asia through the establishment of a multimodal transport system (Triport) linking ports, airports, and railways, and through large-scale investments in logistics infrastructure.