Busan is good

EU and Member States Delegation Visits Busan to Discuss Maritime Cooperation and Participate in Marine Environment Campaigns

내용

Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that today (April 28), delegations including Charlina Vitcheva, Director-General of the European Commission Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Maria Castillo Fernandez, EU Ambassador to Korea, and representatives from 11 EU member states such as Germany, Greece, and Ireland, are visiting Busan to attend the 10th Our Ocean Conference (OOC).

The EU Delegation to Korea has been actively strengthening bilateral economic and political relations with Korea and had previously visited Busan in November 2024 to discuss carbon neutrality policies and cooperation strategies.

The EU delegation will engage in various activities to discuss maritime cooperation and participate in hands-on marine environment campaigns, including:

• ●A meeting with Mayor Park to discuss maritime cooperation,

• ●A fishing net collection campaign,

• ●Visits to recycling facilities.

Focusing on Busan’s fishing net recycling project, the delegation, along with Busan City and Saha District, will participate in a fishing net collection and sorting campaign today.

• ●The campaign will be held at Dadaepo Port in Saha District at 2:00 p.m.

• ●Delegates will sort discarded fishing gear collected from fishing vessels and visit Netspa Co., Ltd. in Gangseo District to observe the full recycling process.

Netspa Co., Ltd. is a Busan-based social venture that collects discarded fishing nets, processes them into high-performance nylon raw materials, and recycles them into high-value-added textile products such as clothing, bags, and industrial materials.

It has built a strong collaboration system with Busan City and Saha District, becoming a leading public-private partnership model for marine plastic reduction and circular economy initiatives.

Finally, the EU delegation will visit the Busan Resource Circulation Cooperation Center to learn about Busan’s resource recycling policies and view exhibits showcasing products made from recycled waste, thereby gaining a deeper understanding of Busan’s sustainable environmental management practices.

Maria Castillo Fernandez, EU Ambassador to Korea, stated,

"Following the signing of the Korea-EU Green Partnership in 2023 to strengthen green cooperation, Busan has emerged as an important partner in marine environmental protection and sustainable resource management.
Busan’s leading initiatives are impressive, and this visit is expected to further expand cooperation opportunities between Busan and the EU."

Mayor Park Heong-joon commented,

"The visit of the EU Delegation to Busan is a valuable and important step in advancing international cooperation.
It is expected to serve as a foundation for Busan to lead practical cooperation with the EU in various fields as a global maritime city.
Moving forward, we will continue to strengthen cooperation with the EU and the international community to build a sustainable marine environment and a robust circular economy."

---

[Reference 1] Overview of the EU Delegation’s Visit to Busan

• ●Date: April 28, 2025 (12:00–16:00) (during the OOC)

• ●Locations:

• ○Dadaepo Port, Saha District

• ○Busan Resource Circulation Cooperation Center, Gangseo District

• ○Netspa Co., Ltd.

• ●Participants:

• ○Around 50 attendees, including Busan City officials, Netspa representatives, and EU delegates

• ○Busan City: Mayor, Director-General of the Oceans, Agriculture, and Fisheries Bureau

• ○EU Delegation: 32 participants including EU Directors-General and Ambassadors

• ●Key Activities:

• ○Meeting on maritime cooperation,

• ○Fishing net recycling campaign,

• ○Facility tours

---

[Reference 2] Overview of the European Union (EU)

• ●Member States: 27 countries

• ●Established: March 25, 1957 (EEC, EURATOM)

• ●Population: 450 million (2023)

• ●Headquarters: Brussels, Belgium

• ●Purpose: Economic integration, political and social cohesion, and common foreign policy

• ●Main Institutions: European Council, European Commission, European Parliament, Court of Justice of the EU, European Central Bank

Key Economic Figures (2023):

• ●Total GDP: USD 16.61 trillion

• ●GDP per capita: USD 37,280

• ●Economic Growth Rate: 3.2%

• ●Exports: EUR 4.4 trillion (2022)

• ●Imports: EUR 4.6 trillion (2022)

Korea-EU Relations (2023):

• ●Diplomatic ties established: July 24, 1963

• ●Korean Embassy to the EU established: November 1965

• ●EU Delegation to Korea established: January 1990

• ●Korea-EU Trade (2023):

• ○Exports: USD 68.2 billion

• ○Imports: USD 67.9 billion

• ●Investments:

• ○Korea to EU: USD 122.5 billion

• ○EU to Korea: USD 122.98 billion

• ●Busan-EU Trade (2020):

• ○Exports: USD 1.2 billion

• ○Imports: USD 2.2 billion