On Friday, County Executive Marc Elrich shared the news of the county helping launch the U.S. Global Business Center in Rockville, established by leaders of Montgomery County’s South Korean sister city of Daejeon.
Elrich wrote the following, “The city has a history of interest in international trade and this office will create a launching pad for Korean businesses in Montgomery County’s innovation centers. This new venture will allow the Daejeon group to strengthen international trade relations and, in their words, reshape its global business landscape.
The seeds for this partnership began in 2017 when then County Executive Ike Leggett led a delegation to Daejeon. Within the past few years, we have strengthened those relationships with a trip involving Chief Administrative Officer Rich Madaleno and then-Council President Evan Glass. I have also made multiple trips to South Korea with economic development and business leaders from our area. This is an example of how our work to grow those relationships through the BIO Korea and Smart City conferences and visits with government and university leaders will continue to be mutually beneficial.
I know our counterparts in Daejeon are also very excited about the opening of this international trade office. They believe it marks a decisive milestone, and we are happy to have a role in that. It shows other cities in that region of the world how serious we are in establishing connections with innovative companies looking to expand into the U.S. market.
My office was honored to host key leaders of the project and the center’s new executive director on Monday.”