SEOUL-- A South Korea-Colombia summit scheduled for next week will offer an opportunity for Seoul to expand its diplomacy and economic ties with Central and South America, a senior presidential official said Friday.
President Moon Jae-in will hold an in-person summit with his Colombian counterpart Ivan Duque at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul on Wednesday, the second day of the Colombian leader's three-day state visit to South Korea set to begin Tuesday.
The state visit was arranged at the invitation of the South Korean president to mark the 10th anniversary of a bilateral strategic partnership and the 70th anniversary of Colombia's participation in the 1950-53 Korean War this year. The meeting will be Moon's first summit with a leader from a South American nation since the pandemic.
Moon has consistently expressed his intent to expand cooperation with Central and South American economies since his summit with U.S. President Joe Biden in May and the fourth South Korea-Central American Integration System summit in June.
Moon reportedly bets that South Korea, which is pushing forward with its Korean New Deal policy, could be an optimal partner for Central and South American nations that are seeking to turn into eco-friendly, digital-oriented economies.
Seoul's increased ties with Central and South American partners is a lucrative prospect for South Korea in terms of new market opportunities, with the accumulative gross domestic product of the regions' 33 countries amounting to US$5 trillion.
Colombia in particular serves as a key nation in the region for connecting North and South Americas and also as a key member of the Pacific Alliance, a Latin American trade bloc formed by Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru established in 2011.
"Our strategy is to secure sustainable new growth momentum by expanding the reach of the Korean New Deal initiative to Central and South America, with the South Korea-Colombia summit as the occasion," a senior Cheong Wa Dae said on the customary condition of anonymity.
Seoul's immediate goal following the summit is becoming an associate member of the Pacific Alliance. South Korea is currently an observing member of the trade bloc, while Colombia is this year's chair nation of the Pacific Alliance.
"As Colombia is this year's chair nation (of the Pacific Alliance), we are hoping that it supports such goals of ours," the official said.
The Cheong Wa Dae official added that being accepted as an associate member will likely have the effect of forging a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) with Mexico. South Korea currently has FTAs in place with all Pacific Alliance member states except Mexico.
Through the summit, Seoul is also seeking to bolster cooperation in areas of defense and infrastructure with Colombia. South Korean companies may possibly be offered opportunities to participate in a light rail construction project in Medellin and a subway line development project in Bogota.
The two countries are also expected to strengthen their strategic relationship through potential joint projects in defense infrastructure and support programs for veterans, with Colombia being the sole nation in Central and South America to fight alongside South Korea during the Korean War.
Source: Yonhap News Agency