Governor Kim Jin-tae Proposes Establishing a Korea-U.S.-Japan Triangular Bio Belt

Governor Kim Jin-tae Attends 8th Korea-Japan Mayors and Governors Meeting
Five Korean and Nine Japanese Regions Join to Strengthen Cooperation
Promotes "2025?2026 Years of Visit to Gangwon Province: Please Visit Gangwon"

Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, attended the 8th Korea-Japan Mayors and Governors Meeting held on the 12th in Songdo, Incheon, where he proposed joint development through the establishment of a Korea-U.S.-Japan triangular bio network.

Kim Jin-tae, Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, is attending the 8th Korea-Japan Mayors and Governors Meeting held on the 12th in Songdo, Incheon, and is posing for a commemorative photo. Provided by Gangwon Province

This meeting was held for the first time in two years since the 7th meeting in 2023 in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, and was organized to strengthen practical exchanges and cooperation between Korea and Japan.

From Korea, five regions participated, including Gangwon, Incheon, Sejong, North Jeolla, and North Gyeongsang. From Japan, nine regions participated, including Nagano Prefecture-which is both the chair of the National Governors’ Association and a friendship exchange region with Gangwon-along with Iwate, Miyagi, Yamanashi, Okayama, Hiroshima, Tokushima, Fukuoka, and Kumamoto.

The participants engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as economic and industrial cooperation, joint responses to regional and population decline, and measures to promote friendship and exchanges between the two countries.

Governor Kim delivered a presentation in Japanese using PowerPoint, warmly welcoming the Japanese governors to Korea, conveying his greetings and pleasure at their visit. He also shared, "Last week, I visited Hiroshima to celebrate Gangwon FC's first entry into the Asian Champions League and cheered alongside 500 residents from our province."

He went on to highlight Gangwon's bio industry capabilities, stating, "Gangwon ranks second nationwide in medical device exports and has surpassed 1 trillion won in sales for four consecutive years."

He also presented an organizational chart of Japan's bio community, noting, "I was impressed by how numerous institutions cooperate organically under a single governance structure and by the strong leadership of local governments." He proposed, "Let us establish a Korea-U.S.-Japan triangular bio belt to create a new model of trilateral cooperation, not only for security but also for economic collaboration."

Kim Jintae, Governor of Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province, is attending the 8th Korea-Japan Mayors and Governors Meeting held on the 12th in Songdo, Incheon. Provided by Gangwon Province

Finally, showing a photo of a cruise ship, he promoted tourism by saying, "2025-2026 will be the Years of Visit to Gangwon Province. Recently, 300 residents from our province visited Hokkaido by cruise ship. I hope many people from Japan will visit Gangwon, whether by cruise or by plane."

Meanwhile, at the meeting, the two countries agreed to develop cooperation models to address shared issues such as economic challenges and population decline, in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the normalization of diplomatic relations between Korea and Japan. To ensure the continuation of this cooperative relationship, they also agreed to hold the 9th Korea-Japan Mayors and Governors Meeting in Japan in two years.