President Yoon: "Resource-rich Kazakhstan and tech-advanced Korea must strengthen supply chain cooperation"

Keynote Speech at the 'Korea-Kazakhstan Business Forum'
24 MOUs Signed Between Companies and Institutions from Both Countries

President Yoon Suk-yeol is delivering the keynote speech at the 'Korea-Kazakhstan Business Forum' held at the Hilton Hotel in Astana, Kazakhstan, on the afternoon of the 12th (local time). [Image source=Yonhap News]

During his state visit to Kazakhstan, President Yoon Suk-yeol stated on the 12th (local time) that "resource-rich Kazakhstan and Korea, which possesses processing technology and demand industries, should strengthen supply chain cooperation centered on critical minerals."

President Yoon made these remarks while attending the 'Korea-Kazakhstan Business Forum' held under the theme 'From Cooperation to Partnership' at the Hilton Astana Hotel in Kazakhstan that afternoon. President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev also attended the forum.

In his keynote speech, President Yoon emphasized, "Since establishing diplomatic relations in 1992, Kazakhstan has become Korea's largest trading and investment partner in Central Asia," adding, "Korea and Kazakhstan, with complementary industrial structures, must further expand the horizons of economic cooperation."

President Yoon stated, "Korea will be a key partner in advancing Kazakhstan's infrastructure in transportation, electricity, and gas," and expressed hope that "Korean companies, whose construction capabilities and reliability have been proven, will participate more actively in Kazakhstan's infrastructure development."

He also said, "As a manufacturing powerhouse, Korea will be a core partner in Kazakhstan's 'Manufacturing Development Strategy,' which the Kazakh government is prioritizing," and expressed expectations that "industrial cooperation between the two countries will expand beyond automobiles to the entire manufacturing sector."

Furthermore, President Yoon added, "We will support the capacity building of Kazakh public officials and share Korea's long-accumulated digital administrative capabilities with Kazakhstan."

About 300 government officials and businesspeople from both countries attended the forum to explore ways to enhance economic cooperation. From Korea, attendees included Choi Sang-mok, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance; Ahn Duk-geun, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy; Yoon Jin-sik, Chairman of the Korea International Trade Association; Park Jung-won, Chairman of Doosan Group; and Jang In-hwa, Chairman of POSCO Group.

From Kazakhstan, participants included Roman Sklyar, First Deputy Prime Minister; Kanat Sharipbayev, Minister of Industry and Construction; Murt Nurtleu, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Aidarbek Saparov, Minister of Agriculture; and Nurlan Zhakupov, Chairman of Samruk-Kazyna.

Meanwhile, a total of 24 memorandums of understanding (MOUs) were signed between companies and institutions of the two countries during the forum. The government plans to actively support ensuring that the MOUs signed this time lead to concrete outcomes.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.