World News | Presidents of South Korea and Poland Hold Talks on Security, War in Ukraine and Business Cooperation
Get latest articles and stories on World at LatestLY. The presidents of South Korea and Poland on Thursday pledged to strengthen their security, business and trade relations.
Warsaw, Jul 13 (AP) The presidents of South Korea and Poland on Thursday pledged to strengthen their security, business and trade relations.
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and his delegation met with his Polish host, President Andrzej Duda and government members at the Presidential Palace.
“With President Duda, we discussed in depth the development of the strategic relations between the two countries,” Yoon said after the talks.
“We will support efforts for increasing investment and trade,” Yoon said, noting that bilateral trade turnover in 2022 was some USD 9 million, the highest in the 34-year-long relations.
That makes Poland the biggest recipient of South Korea's investment last year, partly from Poland's purchases of South Korea's military equipment.
The two presidents watched as government ministers from both countries signed agreements on developing cooperation in infrastructure and modern technologies, as well as on cooperation in the future rebuilding of Ukraine, Poland's neighbour, which is fighting Russia's military invasion.
Duda said Poland is seeking cooperation with South Korean companies in producing military equipment, like tanks, in Poland's armaments plants.
He said prospects for developing bilateral economic ties are "excellent."
Yoon also met with Poland's right-wing Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki and was to meet speakers of both chambers of parliament.
On Friday, Yoon and Duda are to address a Polish-Korean economic forum.
Yoon came to Warsaw after attending a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, where he sought to deepen ties with the military alliance amid global security threats including Russia's war on Ukraine and North Korea's illicit nuclear program.
Poland is buying some USD 17 billion worth of advanced military equipment from South Korea.
The purchase is meant to upgrade Poland's defence potential and fill in for the older equipment that Poland has offered to Ukraine, like the Soviet-made MiG-29 fighter jets.
Among the purchased equipment, some of which has already arrived in Poland, are Korea's K9 howitzers, K2 tanks, Chunmoo missile launchers and FA-50 training and fighter jets.
Poland buys more from South Korea than it exports there, leaving a trade imbalance in Seoul's favour. (AP)
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)