Seoul – On 9 December 2024, the 24th Consultative Commission Meeting of the Greater Tumen Initiative took place in Seoul, Republic of Korea, with the flexibility of virtual participation. Delegates from GTI Member States, including the People’s Republic of China, Mongolia, the Republic of Korea, and the Russian Federation, as well as senior officials from line ministries, local governments of Northeast Asia (NEA), financial institutions, academic institutions and international organizations, attended the meeting. Concurrently, the 3rd Annual Forum on Connectivity and the 2nd GTI National Coordinators Meeting in 2024 were also held successfully on the same day.
H.E. Mr. Choi Jiyoung, (Deputy Minister for International Affairs, Ministry of Economy and Finance, Republic of Korea) opened the meeting with a warm welcome to all delegates. He suggested two solutions to achieve stable economic growth amid complex challenges including economic uncertainties, climate change and geopolitical conflicts. Digital technology prevails across all aspects of our daily lives including trade. ROK is embracing the digital age with New Growth Strategy 4.0 and boosting digital ODA to aid other nations' digital shifts. Low-carbon economy, as another solution, has been advanced by developed countries through green growth knowledge sharing. He reviewed the history, organizational structure, and recent progress of GTI, and emphasized the contribution of the ROK government. He acknowledged that while initial development goals have not been fully achieved despite ongoing efforts, the shared goal of achieving prosperity through regional cooperation remains unchanged. He emphasized the importance of transforming GTI into an international organization and promised ROK’s support for this transformation. Finally, he highlighted Northeast Asia’s potential and called for member countries’ cooperation in creating an open and stable regional environment for economic growth.
Then the meeting was followed by the opening remarks from Mr. Nikita Kondratiev (Director General, Department of Multilateral Economic Cooperation and Special Projects, Ministry of Economic Development, Russian Federation), Mr. Erdenebat Tseveendorj (Director General, Integrated Development Planning and Policy Department, Ministry of Economy and Development), and H.E. Mr. Wang Shouwen (China International Trade Representative [full minister rank] and Vice Minister of Commerce of China).
Mr. Nikita Kondratiev welcomed GTI cooperation channels back to business as usual. Russia has hosted the first in-person Tourism Board session since the pandemic. He emphasized the importance of enhancing the GTI cooperation mechanism to generate practical projects, mobilize financing and engage stakeholders. GTI should be more resilient to post-pandemic challenges. He identified the application of digital technologies in trade and logistics and the transition to a low-carbon economy is among major cooperation opportunities for the GTI in the coming years. Stressing e-commerce as a key enabler for regional trade, he proposed that GTI facilitate cross-border e-commerce through workshops for local exporters and electronic document exchanges. He also highlighted the need for transition pathways to a low-carbon economy that accounts for national socio-economic circumstances and energy security. Emphasizing the importance of international coordination on climate and sustainable development goals, he called for free access to financial and technological resources to implement the transition to a low-carbon economy.
Mr. Erdenebat Tseveendorj highlighted Mongolia’s rapid GDP growth in the past year and shared the country’s goal of sustaining an annual growth of 6% or higher, driven by innovation and science. Mongolia has committed to allocating 1% of its GDP to sectors of science and innovation, focusing on human capital, transforming universities, enhancing the business environment, strengthening intellectual property, and establishing an innovation ecosystem. He emphasized Mongolia is committed to leveraging artificial intelligence and new technologies to accelerate, improve productivity, and enhance its regional competitiveness. Stressing the significance of regional cooperation for sustainable and innovative growth, he reaffirmed Mongolia’s commitment to deepening this partnership and supporting GTI’s goals, enhancing research institutions, fostering regional innovation, and expanding collaborative efforts to ensure sustainable growth. He concluded by expressing hope for valuable ideas to achieve a more innovative and sustainable future in the region.
H.E. Mr. Wang Shouwen emphasized Northeast Asia’s distinct resource endowment, complementary economies, closely interlinked production and supply chains, and immense potential for economic and trade collaboration. He identified challenges including bottlenecks in cross-border multi-modal transport, pending regular operations on multiple transport routes, lagging border port construction relative to e-commerce growth, and a lack of tangible projects in marine economies and logistics. He proposed four strategic actions for GTI members: strengthen opening up and promote regional economic integration; continuously promote the construction of transport corridors and bolster regional connectivity; support trade digitization and facilitation to address choke points in border ports; and continuously advance the legal transition of GTI. Reflecting on China’s economic resilience, potential and growth, he emphasized China’s commitment to expanding institutional opening-up, which would bring new opportunities in Northeast Asia. President Xi Jinping advocates promoting inclusive and equitable economic globalization and building a community with a shared future for mankind. China stands ready to align development strategies with GTI members and share the opportunities for Chinese modernization.
Thereafter, the GTI Member States first positively reviewed the Overall Progress since the 23rd CC Meeting in December 2023, welcomed “The Handbook on Inward and Outward Processing Procedures” and “Ecotourism Development in Northeast Asia: GTI Seminar on Ecotourism Promotion and a Handbook on NEA Ecotourism Routes”, and endorsed GTI Strategic Action Plan (SAP) for 2025-2029, expenditure report, budget proposal and the work plan for the period ahead as well as the Project Proposal on AEO Cooperation Scheme and Multilateral MRA among GTI Customs Administrations.
In addition, the representatives of Jilin Province and Liaoning Province of China, the Korea AEO Association, the Ministry of Economic Development of Russia, and the Liaoning University of International Business and Economics shared the key results of several recent GTI activities and the new project idea.
The second session themed Innovative Economic Growth - Digital Trade Growth, began with an introductory speech on opportunities and challenges in digitally driven trade growth by ROK. Russian representative presented on the domestic and cross-border e-commerce development in Russia, proposing a potential GTI collaboration to implement the Cross-Border Paperless Trade in Asia and the Pacific (CPTA) and promote mutual recognition of electronic trade documents in Northeast Asia. Mongolia briefed on policy on trade facilitation and the development of Foreign Trade Single Electronic Window (FTSEW). China shared experiences in developing the digital economy and related international cooperation, and suggestions on the follow-up actions on GTI collaboration on the digital economy.
The theme of the third session is Sustainable Economic Growth - Promoting the Transition to a Low-Carbon Economy. In response to climate change and to foster sustainable development, more countries are rightfully focusing on promoting the transition to a low-carbon economy. The representative from Yonsei University presented the major achievements and challenges in addressing climate change in NEA, stressing the need for long-term collaboration on environmental issues, ecosystem conservation, and water management with joint efforts among GTI members. Korea Energy Economics Institute (KEEI) presented three strategies to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon economy: strengthening policies and governance, advancing clean energy technologies, and securing financial support through green finance.
Finally, members unanimously approved the Seoul Declaration*. The Government of the Russian Federation assumed the GTI CC Chairmanship and confirmed that the 25th CC meeting will be hosted and chaired by the Russian Federation in 2025.
* Seoul Declaration: http://www.tumenprogram.org/?info-818-1.html