Cook Islands, Canada, Malaysia, and Vietnam Series of Summit Meetings
Seeking Cooperative Relations with ASEAN and Non-ASEAN Countries
President Yoon Suk-yeol attended the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) related summit on the 6th, activating multilateral diplomacy while also holding bilateral talks with the leaders of four countries: the Cook Islands, Vietnam, Canada, and Malaysia. He focused all efforts on economic cooperation, North Korea sanctions, and support for hosting the 2030 Busan World Expo.
Starting from the morning, President Yoon conducted a total of five bilateral summit meetings before, during, and after the Korea-Cook Islands summit, the Korea-ASEAN summit, and the ASEAN+3 (Korea-China-Japan) summit. Since the ASEAN summit includes the 10 ASEAN countries as well as major countries worldwide, the purpose was to strengthen cooperative relations with them as much as possible.
Before attending the Korea-ASEAN summit, President Yoon held a summit meeting with Mark Brown, Prime Minister of the Cook Islands. President Yoon and Prime Minister Brown previously held a summit meeting in May during the 1st Korea-Pacific Island Countries Summit held in Seoul. President Yoon explained, "Korea has decided to significantly increase official development assistance (ODA) and the Korea-Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) cooperation fund for Pacific Island countries to strengthen solidarity and cooperation in responding to regional common challenges such as climate change, disasters, health and food crises, and the digital divide." He also said, "We are promoting customized cooperation projects for individual countries." The two leaders also discussed bilateral cooperation in deep-sea resource development and the marine fisheries sector. President Yoon also prepared promotional materials to support the bid for the 2030 Busan Expo.
Marking the 60th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Canada, President Yoon met again with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who officially visited Korea in mid-May, after about three months. President Yoon said, "Through numerous multilateral meetings and several bilateral talks, I feel that Prime Minister Trudeau and I have become close friends," expressing gratitude for the tax benefits granted to Korean electric vehicle and battery companies operating in Canada. Prime Minister Trudeau also expressed appreciation for the dispatch of the Korea Disaster Relief Team (KDRT) to assist with wildfire suppression in Canada in July. At this meeting, the two leaders reviewed the follow-up implementation status of cooperation matters agreed upon at the May summit, including the 2+2 foreign and industrial high-level economic security dialogue, the memorandum of understanding (MOU) on critical mineral supply chains, the military secret information protection agreement, the youth exchange MOU, and the '2024-2025 Year of Mutual Cultural Exchange MOU.'
Immediately after the summit with Prime Minister Trudeau, President Yoon held a summit meeting with Anwar Ibrahim, Prime Minister of Malaysia. This was President Yoon's first summit meeting with the Malaysian leader. President Yoon appealed for support for the 2030 Busan Expo bid and mentioned this year's ▲ export contract for 18 units of the Korean fighter jet (FA-50) ▲ opening of the MRT Line 2 involving Korean companies ▲ first overseas export market entry of halal Korean beef. He also expressed hope that the 'CCS Hub Project,' Asia's first carbon dioxide transport and storage project, and the 'Green Ammonia' project, both promoted by companies from the two countries, would achieve successful results. The two leaders agreed to seek various training opportunities for young Malaysian talents to develop their capabilities in Korea, marking the 40th anniversary of Malaysia's Look East Policy. The Look East Policy was an external policy initiated in the early 1980s by former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir to learn from Korea and Japan for economic development, through which about 5,000 Malaysian public officials and students have trained in Korea over the past 40 years.
President Yoon held talks with Pham Minh Chinh, Prime Minister of Vietnam, emphasizing that Vietnam is a key partner country in implementing Korea's Indo-Pacific strategy. This meeting came about two months after President Yoon's state visit to Vietnam at the end of June. President Yoon particularly expressed hope for continued cooperation to realize freedom, peace, and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region. He urged the thorough implementation of the comprehensive strategic partnership development plan agreed upon by Korea and Vietnam in June. Furthermore, he stressed the importance of creating a business-friendly environment to expand bilateral trade and requested Vietnam's attention and support for the smooth activities of Korean companies operating there.
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