HanmiGlobal, a South Korean construction project management firm, will host a seminar in Seoul on Nov. 5 to explore infrastructure development and economic cooperation along the Tumen River, which marks the border between North Korea and China, and between North Korea and Russia at its lower end.
The event, jointly organized by HanmiGlobal's Institute of Unified Korea Construction Strategy and the Korean Association of North Korean Studies, will examine how emerging Arctic shipping routes and regional transport networks could reshape cross-border cooperation in Northeast Asia.
The seminar comes after the opening of the first road bridge linking North Korea and Russia across the Tumen River in September, highlighting growing interest in regional connectivity amid closer ties among Pyongyang, Beijing and Moscow.
Experts from South Korea, China and Japan will discuss development opportunities and geopolitical challenges.
Sung Weon-Yong, a professor at Incheon National University, will examine the implications of Arctic shipping routes for regional cooperation, while Park Young-min of Daejin University will assess development prospects amid strengthening North Korea-China-Russia ties.
Jang Dong-myung of China's Liaoning University will present development strategies involving China's three northeastern provinces, while Mitsuhiro Mimura of Japan's University of Niigata Prefecture will discuss Japan's potential role in regional economic cooperation.
A panel moderated by Seo Bo-hyuk, president of the Korean Association of North Korean Studies, will address infrastructure priorities and obstacles to cross-border development.
Lee Sang-jun, head of HanmiGlobal's research institute, stressed the need for South Korea to explore new opportunities for cooperation with neighboring countries as Arctic shipping routes gain strategic importance.
The seminar will run from 1:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m. at the Construction Center in Nonhyeon-dong, southern Seoul. Admission is free, with advance registration available through the event poster's QR code until Nov. 4.
yejinlim@heraldcorp.com
