Delegation from Hamburg visits Poland

'Hamburg has stable and robust relations with its neighbours and trading partners. We are the gateway to the world for the Federal Republic of Germany and, as Germany's largest rail port, we also fulfil this function for our European neighbours far beyond. At the same time, the geopolitical environment is increasingly characterised by economic and political protectionism and security challenges on Europe's borders. In this situation, it is essential that we, as neighbouring regions along the Baltic Sea, can rely on each other and work together'.

Michal Jaros, State Secretary at the Polish Ministry of Development and Technology, said: 'Hamburg is a very important partner for us. I am convinced that this cooperation, in which we take each other seriously and value each other as partners, will continue to develop. In addition to economic issues, the security of our countries is also at stake. It is in the interest of Poland and Germany to intensify and deepen our cooperation, not only at the national level, but also and especially at the level of the federal states.

Hamburg is linked to Poland by intensive trade relations and a foreign trade volume of more than €5 billion. In addition to Polish imports and exports, a significant proportion of which are also handled via the Port of Hamburg and its hinterland connections, numerous German companies have sites in Poland, the largest country in Central Europe. Since 2004, the infrastructure has been extensively developed with European funding, while the country's economic growth in recent years has been among the highest in the EU. The ports of Gdansk and Gdynia, which are also served by the Port of Hamburg, have recently seen an increase in transhipments, largely driven by deliveries to and within Ukraine and the transhipment of energy sources. Container terminals are largely being developed and supported by private sector investment. Further development of rail and road links in the European corridors is being pursued in Poland, particularly in the north-south direction, and will contribute to a stronger infrastructure.

Dr Leonhard, Senator for Economics and Labour: "Together with our Polish partners, we want to build on and further develop the diverse social and economic cooperation - the development of the Polish economy will continue to be characterised by increasing domestic demand, and there are numerous points of contact, for example in the field of sustainable energy production or logistics.

Marcin Skwierawski, Deputy Marshal of the Pomorskie Voivodeship: 'Hamburg, Pomorskie, Gdansk - what we have in common is the sea and the ports. This is the future in the context of new technologies, logistics and green energy. Our relations are already reflected in concrete projects and investments. I believe that our meeting will open up new opportunities and strengthen our joint action for the development of the coastal regions.

The trip follows previous business delegations from Hamburg to Norway and Denmark, as well as to Estonia and Latvia. It underlines the importance of the Baltic Sea region and partnerships with neighbouring European regions for Hamburg's economy and serves to implement the Hamburg Senate's foreign trade concept: 'Hamburg is the transport hub for the Baltic Sea region. Sweden, Finland, the Baltic States and Poland are important trading partners and handle a large part of their overseas trade via Hamburg,' it says.

In addition to the exchange with the ports, the programme of this trip, which helps the participating companies to open up new markets, included talks with the Marshal's Office of the Pomeranian Voivodeship and the local business development agency, a visit to the TransLogistica trade fair and support for the activities of Hamburg companies represented there by Hamburg Hafen Marketing, as well as a visit to the Cambridge Innovation Centre in Warsaw for an exchange with start-ups, primarily from the logistics sector. Networking events were also held in the Tri-City region and in Warsaw to establish contacts between Hamburg and Polish companies, reaching a total of over one hundred participants on the Polish side. There are also contacts with German diplomatic missions, the German-Polish Chamber of Foreign Trade, representatives of German Trade and Invest (GTAI) and other local players.