1. The 3^rd ROK-Finland Bilateral Economic Consultations (hereinafter referred to as the “Bilateral Economic Consultations”) were held in Helsinki, Finland on Thursday, September 26 with Deputy Minister for Economic Affairs Yun Kang-hyeon of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea (ROK), on the ROK side, and Under-Secretary of State for External Economic Relations Nina Vaskunlahti of the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Finland, on the Finnish side, as respective head of delegation.

2. The Bilateral Economic Consultations came three months after President Moon Jae-in’s state visit to Finland from 9 to 11 June 2019, with the aim of looking through current economic issues between the two countries. The two sides discussed not only ways to expand general bilateral trade and investment, but also follow-up measures in specific areas of cooperation such as innovation and startups, the Fourth Industrial Revolution, energy, healthcare and exchanges of talented people.

3. Finland has built one of the world’s leading startup ecosystems. The two sides shared views on specific ways to strengthen bilateral startup networks, promote investment and expand mutual cooperation between startups of the two countries, including the establishment of a Korea Startup Center (KSC) in Finland.

4. The two sides recognized the need to further strengthen bilateral exchanges of human resources, and explored ways for cooperation between relevant authorities of the two countries to encourage more talented Korean young adults to work or study in Finland through Talent Boost Program, an initiative of the Finnish government to attract international talents.

5. In addition, the two sides agreed to continue to bolster cooperation in the fields of future cutting-edge technology such as 5G, artificial intelligence and self-driving as part of their joint response to the Fourth Industrial Revolution. They also shared best practices in renewable energy and digital healthcare, and sought ways to strengthen cooperation in those areas.