Far from the local political battle, in South Korea, 10,000 kilometers from Madrid, Pedro Sánchez is waging an even more complex war than the one that awaits him at home when he returns, with the Government in full fire due to the unforeseen consequences of the law. of sexual freedom, known as
the law of only yes is yes
.
The president and a part of his closest economic team, who accompanies him in Seoul, have diverted on his return from Bali, where he attended the G20 meeting, on a journey of more than 15,000 kilometers (Bali-Seoul-Madrid) with a very clear objective: to seduce Samsung, the Korean technology giant, to choose Spain as the headquarters of a large microchip factory.
There is a lot of competition.
Several European countries are fighting to win this enormous investment, which can amount to up to 30,000 million euros just for a large factory.
Spain has been in this battle for months.
The Government has put 12,500 million euros of public money on the table through a specific PERTE of European funds for the semiconductor sector.
Sánchez went to Davos this year with this matter as a priority and met with the heads of the giants in the sector.
But the competition is fierce.
Germany has already managed to get Intel to move its large integrated circuit factory to Magdeburg, about 150 kilometers from Berlin.
the american company
will invest in it just to start about 17,000 million dollars.
The Germans are also aiming to woo Samsung, which has yet to decide where it will set up its European megafactory, and they're not the only ones.
Many look to Seoul, as evidenced by the fact that while Sánchez traveled from Bali, the Dutchman Mark Rutte or the Saudi prince Mohamed Bin Salman also did so.
The three met on Thursday in Seoul.
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Sánchez, who traveled with the Minister of Industry and future candidate in Madrid, Reyes Maroto, stayed one more day to guarantee an appointment not only with the Korean Prime Minister, but also with the CEO of Samsung, Lee Jae-Yong.
This company is the great jewel in the crown of a country in full expansion that has managed to go from absolute poverty to a relevant position on the planet, especially thanks to technological development.
The Samsung factory that Sánchez visited in Pyeongtaek, among heavy security measures, is the most advanced in the world, and Sánchez's team was surprised that even wearing makeup is prohibited because any suspended particles could ruin the microchips.
After the meeting, Sánchez's team is optimistic, although the Koreans do not give any guarantees.
Jae Yong,
who had thoroughly studied the Spanish energy system and other key issues, concluded with the idea that the Spanish candidacy is being seriously considered, but there is still a lot to talk about and negotiate before making a decision.
A Samsung team will travel to Spain shortly to study the possibilities in depth.
Sánchez and Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol have claimed that South Korea and Spain have not only similar economic size and population, but also a similar history as former military dictatorships that became democratic just over 40 years ago.
“South Korea and Spain have transitioned to democracy in recent times.
That unites us when it comes to defending democracy and freedom”, Sánchez summarized.
“Spain and Korea, two countries that have managed to overcome authoritarianism and consolidate democracy.
They are two countries that are committed to multilateralism and a world based on rules and share the same values”, the Korean president has sentenced.
The South Koreans claim their democracy, their connection to the Western world, their excellent educational levels and their high technological capacity against the isolated dictatorship of the North, which continues to launch missiles into the sea daily to remind us of the permanent tension between these two countries.
In fact, during the two days of Sánchez's visit, he has launched two missiles into the Sea of Japan, in international waters.
The second, this Friday, an intercontinental missile, has unleashed all the alarms and led to the convening of the security council of both Japan and South Korea.
Both presidents, in their joint appearance, have harshly condemned these attacks.
“We strongly condemn the sending of ballistic missiles with an unprecedented range.
We have worked together with President Sánchez to respond to North Korean provocations," the Korean president said.
"Spain condemns the missiles in the strongest terms, we express our concern about this escalation, South Korea can count on the support of the kingdom of Spain," Sánchez concluded.
In Seoul, just 50 kilometers from the border, the possibility of attack looms large, and each tunnel is a haven with gas masks and special suits stored in cabinets in case they are needed.
Hotels also have those masks in the rooms.
just 50 kilometers from the border, the possibility of an attack is very present and each tunnel is a refuge with gas masks and special suits stored in glass cabinets in case they are needed.
Hotels also have those masks in the rooms.
just 50 kilometers from the border, the possibility of an attack is very present and each tunnel is a refuge with gas masks and special suits stored in glass cabinets in case they are needed.
Hotels also have those masks in the rooms.
Sánchez was very clear that the main objective of the visit is to seduce Samsung, although he also took advantage of the trip to strengthen bilateral relations with a key country.
"South Korea and Spain are two world powers in the making," summed up the Korean president.
“Spain wants to be a benchmark for the semiconductor industry in Europe.
And also in the green hydrogen and others.
Volkswagen has already announced that it is going to invest 10,000 million in a large battery factory for electric cars.
The Maersk shipping company will also build another megafactory to make its fuel more ecological.
I have visited the Samsung factory and I was impressed with the technological transformation capacity of this country.
We have 12.
500 million euros of public money available and extremely attractive financing instruments.
The world needs to redistribute production.
Why not install production for the EU and Latin America in Spain?
Some companies like Cisco have already announced important investments for the design of semiconductors”, assured Sánchez to encourage Samsung.
The Korean company has programmed up to 330,000 million euros of investment for the next few years, and Sánchez trusts that some will go to Spain.
At the moment they have only announced a large factory in Texas, in the US, but the European commitment has yet to be defined.
Sánchez assured to encourage Samsung.
The Korean company has programmed up to 330,000 million euros of investment for the next few years, and Sánchez trusts that some will go to Spain.
At the moment they have only announced a large factory in Texas, in the US, but the European commitment has yet to be defined.
Sánchez assured to encourage Samsung.
The Korean company has programmed up to 330,000 million euros of investment for the next few years, and Sánchez trusts that some will go to Spain.
At the moment they have only announced a large factory in Texas, in the US, but the European commitment has yet to be defined.
Sánchez explained to the CEO of Samsung the advantages of the Spanish industrial and educational ecosystem, which is specializing in this sector in some areas such as Catalonia, where the supercomputer that develops future European chips is located.
The Government boasts that 37,000 engineers graduate each year in Spain, to which must be added more than 8,000 additional students specifically in this sector.
Samsung executives asked details about these issues and especially about that business and educational ecosystem.
The great advantage is that Spain, a prominent place for Korean tourism —some 600,000 visitors each year— has a good image for executives from this country.
But the competition with other European destinations will be very tough.
Samsung executives have not given any certainty on this trip,
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