Seoul, New Jersey sign MOU to enhance bilateral ties and cooperation

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon signed an agreement establishing a bilateral relationship and enhancing intermunicipal cooperation in different fields between Seoul and New Jersey on Wednesday.

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon, right, and New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy shake hands after signing a memorandum of understanding to enhance bilateral cooperation between the two parties in different sectors, including the economy and education, on Wednesday. [YONHAP]

Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon signed an agreement establishing a bilateral relationship and enhancing intermunicipal cooperation in different fields between Seoul and New Jersey on Wednesday.

The memorandum of understanding (MOU) was signed during Oh's meeting with New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy, part of the governor's nine-day, multicountry economic mission to East Asia, including visits to Korea and Japan.

According to the Seoul Metropolitan Government, both parties agreed to promote “mutual exchanges in a wide variety of economic, academic, social, tourism, cultural, scientific, technological and environmental fields.”

They will mainly focus on mutually beneficial opportunities, including trade and investment partnerships and joint initiatives to foster small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups.

“As the bond between Korea and the United States has deepened and grown in recent years, I anticipate that the relationship between Seoul and New Jersey will likewise progress,” Oh said.

“I expect further exchanges following today's signing of the friendship agreement.”

During their talks on Wednesday, Murphy expressed his astonishment at Korea’s rapid development, the Seoul city government said.

“Korea has changed drastically compared to some two decades ago when I visited the country,” the New Jersey governor remarked.

“And the city of Seoul is at the center of that change.”

Murphy’s visit marked the first time a New Jersey governor has visited the country.

New Jersey is home to the third-largest Korean population in the U.S., with more than 100,000 people in the Korean community.

The state has tried to develop deeper relationships with Asian countries, such as legislating mandatory classes of Asian American history in public schools early last year. New Jersey is the second state to have agreed to such a requirement after Illinois.

The state is also keen on promoting Korean culture, with the borough of Tenafly, a New York suburb, officially designating Oct. 21 as Korean Hanbok Day to celebrate Korean traditional clothing.

This marks the first time an overseas municipality officially celebrated the day outside Korea. Additionally, New Jersey designated Nov. 22 as Kimchi Day in January.

“Across New Jersey, Korean businesses and culture are part of our state’s fabric that helps make it a vibrant and eclectic place to live and work,” said Tim Sullivan, CEO of the New Jersey Economic Development Authority.

“This agreement between Seoul and New Jersey will allow us to foster our decadeslong partnership and greater pursue our shared mission of strengthening and diversifying our economies.”

According to the presidential office, the New Jersey governor also met with President Yoon Suk Yeol the same day, sharing his desire to enhance economic cooperation between his state and Korea.

He noted that Korean businesses significantly influence the state’s economic development.

New Jersey is home to the U.S. headquarters of major Korean conglomerates, including Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics.

Yoon asked for the state’s attentive interest in the Korean community and the culture, stressing the group's outstanding contribution to regional development, including politics.

BY CHO JUNG-WOO [cho.jungwoo1@joongang.co.kr]