President
Kassym-Jomart Tokayev called the first state visit of the President of South
Korea Yoon Suk Yeol to Kazakhstan a historic event. Today, the heads of state
held talks in narrow and expanded formats at the Akorda presidential palace.
President Tokayev and his South Korean counterpart reiterated their commitment
to elevating the bilateral relations to a new level as part of the expanded
strategic partnership. To date, bilateral trade volume has reached $6 billion,
with South Korea entering the top five largest investors in Kazakhstan.
«In the period up to
last year, the volume of investments from South Korea reached $9.6 billion.
Both sides have expressed interest in increasing this figure. There are more
than 700 companies with South Korean capital successfully operating in
Kazakhstan, including major corporations such as Samsung, Hyundai, Kia, Lotte,
Doosan, and POSCO. President Yoon Suk Yeol and I have agreed to strengthen our
comprehensive cooperation, primarily in such areas as infrastructure and
manufacturing development, finance, energy, ecology, automotive and aerospace
industries, IT, and digitalization,» Tokayev said.
The parties also
discussed issues related to joint exploration and extraction of rare earth
metals. President Tokayev confirmed readiness to create conditions for South
Korean companies willing to enter Kazakhstan’s market, especially since all
mechanisms have been established for the implementation of plans. A working
group has been formed to develop cooperation between the intergovernmental
commission, the Business Council, and the business community. Together, they
will contribute to strengthening economic ties.
«During the negotiations
with the Kazakh President, we extensively discussed the prospects of our
cooperation, which has been dynamically developing since the establishment of
diplomatic relations. We have agreed to enhance the effectiveness of the
strategic partnership between Kazakhstan and South Korea. As part of today’s
visit, we have reached several agreements in the energy sector and the supply
of critical minerals,» Yoon said.
The parties intend to
expand cooperation in culture, science, and education. In particular, a branch
of South Korea’s Woosong University may open in Turkistan. Following the
negotiations between the countries, 11 cooperation documents were signed. The
heads of state also agreed to develop a multilateral partnership within the
framework of the Central Asia - South Korea format. President Tokayev supported
the proposal of the South Korean President to hold the first such summit in
Seoul in 2025.
