| French-Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman David-Pierre Jalicon |
First of all, on behalf of the 430 members of the French-Korean Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FKCCI), I would like to congratulate President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol for his success but as well the whole country for this election which shows the strength of Korean democracy.
Despite the close race, the results were not contested, and the process went smoothly. Representing a foreign business community in Korea, the FKCCI is politically neutral, but we will be glad to work with the President chosen by the Korean people and its administration in order to maintain a constructive dialogue and an inclusive approach for the foreign companies present in Korea.
One main challenge for the next administration will be to reconcile a politically divided country, in a challenging context of internal and external pressures such as the Russia-Ukraine war, Omicron outbreak, among others. French companies worry about several issues that the Korean economy is already facing including inflation, rising households' debts, tension in the job market, discrepancies between SMEs and large conglomerate, diversification of the supply chain and on the long-run the energetic transition and the demographic slowdown.
We believe some of those challenges can be address through international cooperation in key sectors. For example, the recovery plan of French economy is based on three pillars (green, digital and health) and is very similar to the Korean New Deal and could easily offers potential partnerships. In this regard, we welcome, within the EU/Indo-pacific strategy, a digital partnership between France, Korea, Japan and Singapore for digital convergence and semiconductors supply, and French investments, here, in the field of hydrogen.
That's why the foreign business community in Korea must be considered as important contributors to the Korean economy, a member of the same business family creating thousands of jobs. For this reason, it is in the peninsula's best interest to address issues that we are facing regarding access market, trade or simply doing business in the country.
They could be summarized in four categories: removing uncertainties, introduction of deregulation, removing excessive pressure and chasing forms of discrimination.
We believe, Korea has an opportunity, thanks to its good COVID-19 crisis management, to take a stronger position and to become a true hub in Asia. Many companies are discussing this possibility, but a flexible approach from the new administration, on the above points, will certainly help.
As a conclusion, I would like to pass here a message of openness toward multilateralism, to President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol.
Korea, as one now of the best-performing OECD countries, gaining rank at the top 10 of the world's largest economies, has earned global recognition and has now a responsibility to play a role on the international stage to preserve global trade and geostrategic equilibriums. So, Korea instead of being too dependent on superpowers, can become a leader in diversifying its approach, joining countries of same sizes, sharing same values around common interests, like France and others.
In this regard, I believe, Korea has a historical momentum to act.