Poland and Korea Intensify Cooperation
The Polish-Korean Forum was one of the main events of the Krynica Forum 2023. The relationship between the two countries is becoming increasingly close. Meetings at the highest political and business level, and discussions on key issues were held there.
The Polish-Korean Forum, part of the Krynica event, was opened by the President of the Republic of Poland, Andrzej Duda, and the Prime Minister of Korea, Han Duck-soo. It was not the first meeting of highest-level representatives of both countries.
“Barely two months ago, the President of the Republic of Korea paid an official visit to Warsaw. At that time, we touched on a number of important topics, discussed prospects for strengthening bilateral relations; bilateral agreements were signed in our presence on cooperation in promoting trade and investment promotion, development of transport infrastructure, as well as on the participation of Polish and Korean companies in the Ukraine reconstruction process”, said Andrzej Duda during the opening ceremony of the Polish-Korean Forum at the Krynica Forum 2023. “The value of Korean direct foreign investments in Poland at the end of 2021 was USD 4.5 billion, compared to USD 3.9 billion in 2020. Importantly, these investments are characterised by an increasing degree of technological sophistication”, Polish president emphasised.
“This forum is held at an important moment in time. Poland is the first country in Central Europe for Korean companies to have entered. It is a very important partner for Korea right now. Last year, the value of our trade reached USD 8.9 billion. This is an exceptionally high value”, said Han Duck-soo, emphasising that trade between the two countries is growing faster than ever before.
The bilateral agreement of 13 July, mentioned by the Polish president, is expected to accelerate the exchange even further, by, among other things, by enabling specialised working groups to emerge and coordinate various areas of cooperation, such as the elimination of trade barriers.
Three Decades and a Quantum Leap
Poland’s transformation after 1989 enabled the establishment of Polish-Korean political relations. Since then, Asian investors have invested heavily in Poland. The true acceleration of cooperation was seen after signing of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Republic of Korea and the European Union, followed by the Polish-Korean agreements. Investors from Korea, like others, have been able to count on support, which in recent years has included a country-wide Polish Investment Zone. The Republic of Korea is one of the largest foreign investors in Poland, with companies such as LG Electronics, Samsung Electronics, Heesung Electronics and Hyundai Motor among the significant employers. Korean companies have created approximately 30,000 jobs in Poland, including in industries related to electronics or electric cars batteries. Thanks to the latter, Poland has become a leading battery manufacturer and currently accounts for more than 30% of European production.
Further notable changes came on 24 February 2022 with Russia’s attack on Ukraine. With the outbreak of war, more similarities were recognised in the history and situation of Poland and Korea – starting from the need to rebuild the country after a devastating war, through dynamic development, the moment of joining the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (both Poland and Korea joined in 1996), to having an aggressive neighbour. Lee Boo-hwan, executive Vice-President of Hanwha Aerospace, made a straightforward statement in Krynica that we have a common enemy, namely Russia, and on top of that, Korea must also face North Korea.
“Today, we are facing threats that for many years were unknown to us, while being the daily reality of Korea, which constantly had to function while having a neighbour set on destruction. Today we understand each other better”, said Jacek Sasin, Minister of State Assets, in Krynica. “Our cooperation is gaining a strong dimension through nuclear energy field. The Republic of Korea is currently one of Poland’s most important economic and political partners in the Asia-Pacific region. Bilateral relations between Poland and the Republic of Korea develop dynamically, especially in the economic and military sectors”, said Jacek Sasin.
A letter of intent for construction of a nuclear power plant in Poland was signed in October 2022 by Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and Poland’s ZE PAK and PGE. Rafał Włodarski, Vice-President of PGE, emphasised that the power plant will have a significant share in Poland’s energy mix.
“If the power plant we plan to build were already in the energy system today, it would provide 2.8 GW of energy. This would account for 12 percent of Poland’s national annual demand. It is clean, stable, and cheap energy”, said the Vice-President.
According to the plans, electricity from the plant is to start flowing in 2035. Korea’s participation in the development of nuclear power sector is intended to be a source of funding and know-how.
Military Security
Another important and rapidly developing area of the cooperation between the countries is related to defence.
“Poland is becoming Korea’s most important customer and partner in defence industry production. We have signed contracts for delivery of FA-50 aircraft, Korean K239 Chunmoo launchers, K2 tanks and K9 howitzers. Some of the tanks’ manufacturing will also take place in Polish factories, which will translate into joint production and export to Poland’s neighbouring markets, and, we hope, more broadly, including other European markets”, Andrzej Duda said in Krynica.
Lee Eui-Seong, Senior Vice-President of Hyundai Rotem, with whom the agreement was signed, declared that the company is committed to cooperation that will contribute to joint exports and intends to develop this activity in Poland as well.
Given its geographical location and commitment to supporting Ukraine, among other aspects, Poland is a natural place to serve as a hub for Ukraine’s reconstruction. The Koreans are interested in investing in Ukraine. In Krynica, the Korean ambassador to Poland, Hoonmin Lim, stated that cooperation with Poland in this regard could be the best approach for Korea.
In turn, Polish representatives emphasised and reminded how important it is now to provide support to Ukraine, including military support. It is a fundamental prerequisite for making any plans for the country’s reconstruction.
Poland and the Republic of Korea are also cooperating on the Central Transport Hub (CPK) project, a new airport to be built between Warsaw and Łódź.
“The expansion of CPK is supported by Korean expertise in similar investments. Over two months ago, a Korean consortium signed a contract with CPK to design a high-speed railway line between Katowice and the Polish-Czech border”, said Andrzej Duda.
The value of the aforementioned contract is PLN 134 million and it will be carried out by Korea National Railway and Dohwa Engineering.
Kang Hee-up emphasised that Korea will be an important partner for Poland, as it is one of the leaders in high-speed rail. The construction of CPK will also mean a dynamic development of such a railway network in Poland.
Cultural rapprochement is also expected to contribute to cooperation. Jadwiga Emilewicz, Deputy Minister for Development and Technology in the Polish government, pointed out that Korea has the highest number of non-Polish nationals learning Polish, and Krzysztof Kozłowski, Ph.D., Vice-Chancellor of the Warsaw School of Economics, said that over the past seven years the interest among students of economic universities in exchange programmes with Korea has increased by 300 percent.
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