Hwaseong Special City Pursues Revitalization of Korea-China Local Government Exchange Through Visits to Hangzhou and Wujiang

[Suwon Ilbo=Reporter Park Chan-hyuk] Hwaseong Special City undertook a two-night, three-day visit to China from the 6th to 8th to strengthen networking between Korea and China local governments and activate substantive exchanges.

The city delegation visited Wujiang District in Suzhou, China on the 7th and held an official meeting with Wujiang District Chief Sun Daoxun. The visit was realized through an official invitation from Wujiang District to commemorate Chief Sun's new appointment (September 2025) and the 25th anniversary of the sister city relationship.

Both sides engaged in broad discussions on ways to expand cooperation in various sectors—culture, sports, economy, and climate policy—that had been halted for the past decade, and held consultations on resuming regular exchanges and creating new cooperation models.

Additionally, participants planted crape myrtle, Hwaseong's city flower, at Dongtai Lake Ecological Park, a representative landmark of Wujiang District, in a memorial planting ceremony to deepen friendship between the two cities.

Hwaseong Mayor Jung Myung-geun said, "Taking the opportunity of the Gyeongju APEC Summit, we will strengthen substantive cooperation at the local government level and lay a new foundation for Korea-China exchanges," and added, "Wujiang District is Hwaseong's first overseas sister city, a longtime friend and reliable partner. Through regular exchanges between our two cities, I look forward to jointly creating innovative future-oriented urban models."

Earlier, on the 6th, the delegation visited Hangzhou to benchmark smart mobility demonstration cases in connection with the 'autonomous driving living lab' national project.

Hangzhou has established itself as a leading smart transportation city in China, based on the digital transportation system led by the Alibaba Group and the commercialization of autonomous buses.

Hangzhou introduced China's first autonomous buses and provides commercial autonomous bus services in eight major districts (Qiantan District, Shangcheng District, among others) covering 3,473 square kilometers, equivalent to five times the area of Seoul.

Hwaseong is a leading autonomous driving city currently conducting demonstration projects for public services in eight Level 4 autonomous driving sectors in the Saesol, Namyang, and Dongtan (partial) areas under the supervision of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and the Korea Transportation Safety Authority.

Based on this benchmarking, the city plans to complete the construction of related infrastructure, including an 'autonomous mobility center,' by the end of this year, and will conduct demonstration services for autonomous driving from next year through 2027 to advance technology and services.

Hwaseong Mayor Jung Myung-geun said, "Through smart mobility diplomacy, we will expand the scope of cooperation in future industries such as autonomous driving and eco-friendly transportation," and added, "We will enhance citizen convenience and build Hwaseong Special City as a leader for the future."