- Mayor highlights cooperation and exchange with a new Pan-Yellow Sea economic community between Korea, China, and Japan -

- Gives a special lecture on “The role of local governments” at Nankai University, one of China’s most prestigious universities -

Incheon Metropolitan City Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok, who is on a trip to China, proposed a trilateral conference between governors and mayors at the helm of local governments in Korea, China, and Japan to facilitate cooperation and exchange between the three countries and help build a better future for Northeast Asia.

The Mayor emphasized the role of local governments in improving the relations between Northeast Asian countries at a special lecture for Chinese and international university students at Nankai University, one of China's top five prestigious universities, on June 29. 

<Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok giving a special lecture on “Why Korea should pay attention to Incheon” to Chinese and international university students at Nankai University in Tianjin, China, on June 29.> 

<Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok visiting Nankai University in Tianjin, China, on June 29 and taking a tour around the Nankai University History Museum.> 

<Incheon Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok taking a commemorative photo after the “Cultural Exchange Performance to Commemorate the 30th Anniversary of the Sister City Agreement between Incheon and Tianjin” (Grand Theater in Tianjin, China) on June 29.>

The trilateral conference between governors and mayors of Korea, China, and Japan to facilitate growth could give the three countries an opportunity to discuss potential exchanges between local governments. 

Currently, Korea hosts separate meetings with China and Japan. Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok proposed the trilateral conference to bring the three countries together and discuss the future of Northeast Asia as a collective. By doing so, the Mayor is hoping that the heads of local governments in Korea, Japan, and China can strengthen mutual cooperation by establishing a new Pan-Yellow Sea economic system.

Mayor Yoo plans to form an economic community between the top port cities of Korea, China, and Japan i.e. Incheon, Tianjin (China), and Kobe (Japan), which are sister cities to each other, and eventually expand the community to include other port cities such as Busan, Shanghai, and Yokohama.

Previously, in a meeting with Lin Songtian, Chair of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries, at Incheon City Hall on March 28, Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok proposed a trilateral setup between the governors and mayors of Incheon, Tianjin, and Kobe. Korea and China started a conference between governors and mayors to discuss mutual growth seven years ago, and it has the same program with Japan as well. In response, Chairman Lin Songtian agreed with Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok’s proposal to expand the conference to include the governors and mayors of all three countries.

Meanwhile, the governor/mayor conference between Korea and Japan first started back in November 1999 (Tokyo, Japan). Each country has hosted three conferences since, and the latest, the 6th conference, was in November 2017 (Busan, Korea). The conference, however, has now been suspended for six years due to the strained Korea-Japan relations and COVID-19. Fortunately, on March 21, the heads of local governments from Korea and Japan met and agreed to resume the Korea-Japan governor/mayor's conference in Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan, this November.

On June 29, Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok gave a special lecture on the need for exchange and the roles of local governments in diplomatic relations between countries, with a focus on the theme of “Why you should pay attention to Incheon among Korean cities in terms of the cooperative relationship between Incheon and Tianjin and Incheon’s inter-city diplomacy.”

In recent years, Korea and China have seen their relationship deteriorate on multiple occasions, and every time, Incheon has played a leading role in bridging the gap between the two countries. Right after signing the sister city agreement with Tianjin in 1993, China began its “Northeast Project” in 2004, and then the THAAD conflict came in 2017. More recently, COVID-19 limited the interaction between Korea and China. Yet, unlike other cities and provinces, Incheon and Tianjin managed to strengthen their ties in the face of adversity.

Unlike national or central governments, which need to take into account the prevailing international relations and conditions, local governments can function as buffers through exchanges across a variety of different fields such as economy, culture, sports, and academics. Naturally, this has increased the need for more practical diplomacy at the working level. In that sense, Incheon is the perfect buffer between Korea and China given its extensive experience in working with its counterparts in China through local government networks.

Moreover, for the sake of peace, mutual development, and future prosperity in East Asia, the cooperation and exchanges between local governments, working in conjunction with diplomatic policies at the national level, should be further expanded, and Mayor Yoo Jeong-bok firmly believes that Incheon, Tianjin, and Kobe can play an indispensable role in improving the relations between all three countries.

The Mayor said, "Expanding the bilateral relationship between Korea and China or between Korea and Japan to Korea to a trilateral system is help the three local governments find new ways of building a stronger collaborative network.” He added, “It can also help us seek practical ways for exchange and cooperation, and to that end, Incheon is more than happy to play a leading role.”