First day of the mission in South Korea: meeting with the President of the Republic Seok-Youl Yoon, the Korea Space Forum and the Luxembourg-Korea Business Forum on the program

Solus advanced materials

The day began with a business lunch with the management of Solus Advanced Materials, Circuit Foil’s parent company since 2020. This was the first interview for Solus Advanced Materials with official representatives of the Luxembourg government after the acquisition initiated during the pandemic. Circuit Foil Luxembourg produces, by a galvanization process, copper foils mainly intended for the production of printed circuits for high-tech products, such as connected devices, sensors in cars or even 5G antennas, the market in full growth. The company, which has 2% of the global copper foil market, nevertheless has almost 70% of the market share for manufacturing 5G-related products. Circuit Foil was founded in Wiltz in the early 1960s and since 2014 had been a subsidiary of the South Korean group Doosan Corp. The company now has 357 employees in Luxembourg and produces around 10,000 tonnes of copper per year.

Korea Space Forum

The delegation was then expected for the official opening of the Korea Space Forum, which will be held from November 28 to 29 at the JW Marriott. The event is held annually and this year’s main theme is “the challenges of the Korean space sector in the space economy”.

As a sign of the growing importance given to the space sector by the Korean government, President Yoon Suk-Yeol attended the event and presented his roadmap for the development of the space economy. Korea, which currently has a hundred space companies in its ecosystem, aims to become one of the top 5 nations in this sector by 2035 and has also increased its budget by 19% by 2022.

Prior to the official opening of the academic session, Economy Minister Franz Fayot signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Minister of Science and ICT of the Republic of Korea, Lee Jong-Ho, to strengthen cooperation between the two countries in the exploration and use of space resources for peaceful purposes. The agreement aims in particular to facilitate the exchange of information, personnel and expertise in science, technology and space applications and should encourage the organization of concrete cooperative activities.

Luxembourg and Korea share many common ambitions in the development of the sector, especially in space resources. Contacts between the two on this topic have intensified in recent years, and especially since 2017. This memorandum of understanding is to further strengthen the cooperation between the two countries’ public and private partners.

Opening the forum, Economy Minister Franz Fayot said: “Luxembourg and South Korea have a long-standing relationship and I am happy to see them grow even stronger in the sector. space activities through the signing of this memorandum of understanding. We share common ambitions in the field of peaceful exploration and use of space resources, which is why I am convinced that we will be able to strengthen our cooperation on many levels, both between private and public actors, for our common benefit.”

At the opening of the Korea Space Forum, President Seok-Youl Yoon made it a point to personally greet HRH the Hereditary Grand Duke and the Minister of Economy.

Luxembourg-Korea Business Forum

Then the Luxembourg-Korea Business Forum was held, organized by the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, with the participation of Young Lee, the Korean Minister of SMEs and Start-ups, with whom a bilateral courtesy interview took place beforehand from the forum.

During the opening ceremony, HRH the Hereditary Grand Duke, Franz Fayot, Minister of Economy, and Young Lee, Minister of SMEs and Start-ups of South Korea, reminded the strong historical ties that unite the two countries, their similarities and the need to strengthen and develop new partnerships at the institutional, economic and academic level.

During his speech, Economy Minister Franz Fayot insisted on the importance of working with countries that share the same values ​​and long-term goals, and why South Korea is a natural partner for Luxembourg in this context. Carlo Thelen, CEO of the Luxembourg Chamber of Commerce, detailed how Luxembourg has started the transition to a digital economy and its expertise in sectors such as logistics, data, space industry, health and eco-technology. Carlo Thelen emphasized that: “We are not only strong business partners, but we are also both pioneers in innovation and leaders in the high-tech and digitization sectors.”

Following the signing of a memorandum of understanding between Luxinnovation, the Luxembourg national innovation agency, and the Global Commercialization Center of Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST GCC), Mario Grotz, Director General of DG Industry, Research and New Technologies, presented Luxembourg’s roadmap for a competitive and sustainable economy by 2025. Then Korea’s policy on the globalization of SMEs and start-ups was highlighted by the Korean minister, Young Lee.

Roundtable discussions on solutions for smart cities and future mobility completed the event, which gathered almost 200 participants.

Official reception

This first day ended with an official reception, organized by the Luxembourg Embassy in close cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce and the Luxembourg Trade and Investment Office in Seoul, in the presence of Jin Park, the Korean Foreign Minister.

Several speakers followed each other to highlight the anniversary of 60 years of diplomatic relations and the excellent relations that bind the two countries on many levels. In his speech, HRH the Hereditary Grand Duke wished to pay tribute to the 85 Luxembourg volunteers who fought with the Korean forces and stressed the importance of keeping their memory alive. That is why in the room where the reception took place, two touch screens were installed so that the guests could browse the memorabilia and memories of the 85 Luxembourg volunteers who fought in Korea.

The Minister of Economy, for his part, was particularly happy about the opening of a Luxembourg embassy in Seoul from 2023.

Communicated by the Ministry of Economy