G20 Major Countries Agree to Strengthen Bilateral Cooperation... Discuss Accelerating FTAs with Saudi Arabia, Brazil, and Others

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on the 25th that Trade Negotiations Chief Andeok Geun solidified bilateral cooperation relationships through bilateral meetings with trade ministers from nine countries including the United States, China, and India, as well as the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), at the G20 Trade and Investment Ministers' Meeting (June 24-25 in Jaipur, India). He also took the opportunity to request support for the bid to host the 2030 Busan World Expo.

First, Chief Andeok reaffirmed the willingness to cooperate for follow-up measures of the recent Korea-US-Japan summit and progress in the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) during his meeting with Katherine Tai, U.S. Trade Representative (USTR). They also agreed to continue close consultations on trade issues such as the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA).

In the meeting with Wang Shouwen, Ministerial-level International Trade Representative of the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, they exchanged views on the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), digital trade, and Korea-China trade and investment cooperation measures, agreeing to maintain communication including high-level talks between trade authorities.

Additionally, they emphasized the need to accelerate progress in ongoing free trade agreements (FTAs) with Saudi Arabia (Korea-GCC FTA), the UAE (Korea-UAE CEPA and Korea-GCC FTA), and Brazil (Korea-Mercosur Trade Agreement (TA)). They also reached a consensus on the necessity of achieving mutually beneficial and meaningful outcomes through progress in negotiations to improve the Korea-India Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA).

Furthermore, they shared views on WTO reform and the objectives of the 13th WTO Ministerial Conference (February 2024) with Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, WTO Director-General, the UAE as the chair country, and other major countries, pledging cooperation to restore the multilateral trading system.

Meanwhile, on the evening of the 25th in New Delhi, Chief Andeok plans to attend a special session of the B20, a consultative body of private economic organizations and companies aimed at delivering policy recommendations during the G20 policy consultation process. He will introduce Korea’s key trade agenda and establish a foundation for strengthening Korea-India economic cooperation through exchanges with various business leaders.