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Busan Mayor Park Heong-joon Meets Canadian Ambassador Philippe Lafortune to Discuss Cooperation in Maritime and Future Industries

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Busan Metropolitan City (Mayor Park Heong-joon) announced that, on December 10 at 9:10 a.m., Mayor Park met with Philippe Lafortune, Ambassador of Canada to Korea, at the City Hall International Protocol Room to discuss ways to expand practical cooperation between Busan and Canada.

During the meeting, Mayor Park and Ambassador Lafortune exchanged broad views on not only expanding economic, maritime, and educational exchanges between Busan and Canada, but also strengthening collaboration in eco-friendly and climate response initiatives.

Mayor Park stated that Canada is “an important partner that has maintained a friendly and cooperative relationship with Busan for many years,” adding that “there is significant potential for joint efforts in maritime industries, energy and resource industries, quantum computing, and artificial intelligence (AI). I hope this visit will serve as a turning point in further solidifying bilateral cooperation.”

Ambassador Lafortune, a native of Montreal, expressed his pleasure in visiting Busan, a sister city, noting that “Busan is Korea’s second-largest city and an international logistics hub port.”

He further commented that “since the signing of the Korea-Canada Free Trade Agreement (FTA), trade volume between the two countries has doubled over the past ten years, and this is expected to increase further.” He added that, with the projected growth in trade volume, “the role of Busan Port will become even more important, and I look forward to enhancing practical cooperation with Busan in the future.”

Busan Metropolitan City plans to expand exchanges with the Canadian federal government and major cities—including sister city Montreal—and actively promote cooperation across a wide range of sectors, including cutting-edge industries such as quantum computing and artificial intelligence (AI), tourism, education, and climate change response.

Mayor Park concluded the meeting by expressing his hope that Busan “will continue to strengthen friendly cooperation with Canada going forward.”

Following the official meeting, Ambassador Lafortune attended the Arctic Partnership Week 2025 event held at BEXCO.