On Wednesday, September 4, Secretary-General Lim Byung-jin met with Igor Kobzev, Governor of Irkutsk Region, on the occasion of his participation in the Eastern Economic Forum, held in Primorsky Territory.
Secretary-General Lim expressed his gratitude for Irkutsk Region’s significant contributions to NEAR, noting its tenure as the 11th NEAR Chair and its dispatch of a resident officer to the NEAR Secretariat to support its development.
He also shared updates on recent NEAR activities and the efforts of Russian member governments, introducing the upcoming High-Level Working Committee in Liaoning Province this September and the Subcommittee on Innovation Plus in Hunan Province this October. He extended an invitation for Irkutsk Region to participate in these events and, in particular, invited Governor Kobzev to attend next year’s General Assembly.
Governor Igor Kobzev highlighted the critical role of NEAR in the current Northeast Asian geopolitical context. He assured active participation in NEAR’s activities, including the upcoming High-Level Working Committee in Shenyang, and emphasized the importance of leveraging the NEAR platform to strengthen collaboration between regional governments and enterprises.
In response, Secretary-General Lim Byung-jin explained that NEAR operates 19 subcommittees across various fields and expressed his hope that Irkutsk Region would make effective use of the NEAR platform.
The meeting was also attended by Ruslan Sitnikov, First Deputy Prime Minister; Anton Khortov, Advisor to the Governor; and other officials.