Korea-Canada Summit... "Elevating to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership"

Strengthening Economic Security Cooperation, Building Mineral Resource Collaboration… Yoon "Finding a Stable Supply Chain Is an Important Issue"

President Yoon Suk-yeol is speaking at the Korea-Canada joint press conference in Ottawa, Canada, on the 23rd (local time). /

[Asia Economy Reporter Baek Kyunghwan] President Yoon Seok-yeol and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau held a summit on the 23rd (local time) and agreed to elevate bilateral relations to a "comprehensive strategic partnership." In particular, they decided to advance their relationship to a higher level by strengthening cooperation on economic security related to critical minerals.

President Yoon and Prime Minister Trudeau held the Korea-Canada summit in Ottawa, Canada, and announced the results of the summit reflecting this agreement. The two leaders stated, "Today, we elevate our bilateral relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership based on five shared priorities: values, security, prosperity, sustainability, and other areas."

The main agreements include ▲ strengthening economic security such as establishing a supply system for critical mineral resources ▲ cooperation on 'global digital transformation' through the combination of AI and digital technologies ▲ creating synergy through cooperation in clean hydrogen production and distribution ▲ close cooperation for North Korea denuclearization and expanded Indo-Pacific strategic communication ▲ and promotion of human and cultural exchanges on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

They particularly agreed on jointly addressing economic security challenges. In the joint statement, the two leaders pledged to "enhance cooperation and coordination to address economic security challenges," including deepening their strategic partnership on resilient supply chains. They also mentioned cooperation in critical mineral supply chains and the electric vehicle value chain.

Regarding the joint creation of future industrial growth engines, President Yoon explained, "Canada, an advanced country in artificial intelligence, and Korea, a digital innovation nation, have pledged to cooperate for global digital transformation." He added, "Since both Canada and Korea have declared goals of carbon neutrality and decarbonization by 2050, we will generate high-level synergy based on each other's strengths in the clean hydrogen production and distribution sector," and announced plans to activate a high-level joint committee between relevant ministries of both countries.

Marking the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations next year, they will also promote human and cultural exchanges. The two leaders agreed to hold cultural exchange events next year and designate 2024?2025 as the "Year of Korea-Canada Mutual Cultural Exchange."

In response to a question at the press conference about the benefits related to critical minerals, President Yoon explained, "If we become heavily dependent on essential materials from countries that do not share our values, it could be a strategic blunder," adding, "Finding a stable supply chain for key materials and minerals with Canada is a strategically very important issue for both countries."