Yoon holds talks with Czech, Danish counterparts before UN General Assembly

Diplomacy

Yoon holds talks with Czech, Danish counterparts before UN General Assembly

Published: 19 Sep. 2023, 11:51 Updated: 19 Sep. 2023, 13:55

SARAH KIM
kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, shakes hands with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen during their bilateral summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on Monday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

President Yoon Suk Yeol kicked off his trip to New York for the UN General Assembly with a series of bilateral talks focused on strengthening economic cooperation and promoting Busan's bid to host the 2030 World Expo.

Yoon, with first lady Kim Keon Hee, arrived in New York on Monday at 10 a.m. for a five-day visit and is scheduled to hold over 30 bilateral summits on the sidelines of the General Assembly.

On the first day of the trip, Yoon met with nine countries' leaders over the course of nine hours since he arrived in the city.

During this first round of back-to-back bilateral summits, he met with the leaders of Sri Lanka, San Marino, Burundi, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Montenegro, Turkmenistan, Saint Lucia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In his meeting with Czech President Petr Pavel, Yoon asked the Czech Republic to support Korean companies' participation in the new nuclear power plant project in Dukovany.

He also asked for cooperation in areas of interest to the Czech Republic, including hydrogen economy and high-speed rail construction.

Pavel responded that he looks forward to expanding cooperation in the energy, automobile and high-speed rail sectors, along with battery production, noting his country is rich in lithium resources.

Yoon, in his talks with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, noted their countries' strengthened cooperation in green growth.

This comes as Korea and Denmark upgraded bilateral relations to a comprehensive green strategic partnership in May 2021 to deepen cooperation on the climate and environment further. The two countries have also held a Green Growth Alliance meeting annually since 2011.

Frederiksen called to expand cooperation to offshore wind power, eco-friendly vessels and sustainable farming, as well as in quantum technology.

Frederiksen also noted Europe's deep concern over the bilateral summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin last week and agreed to cooperate with South Korea for peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and in the region.

The series of bilateral meetings and diplomatic efforts at the UN is significant as South Korea gears up for a secret ballot in November for the Bureau International des Expositions to select the World Expo host country.

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, right, shakes hands with Czech President Petr Pavel during a bilateral summit on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York on Monday. [JOINT PRESS CORPS]

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]