Korea-U.S. alliance at 'unprecedented heights,' foreign minister says

Industry

Published: 28 Nov. 2023, 18:16

Korea-U.S. alliance at 'unprecedented heights,' foreign minister says

From left, American Chamber of Commerce in Korea Chairman James Kim, Minister of Foreign Affairs Park Jin and U.S. Ambassador to Korea Philip Goldberg onstage at a luncheon event on Tuesday, commemorating the 70th anniversary of Korea's bilateral alliance with the United States. [AMERICAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IN KOREA]

Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin said that Korea-U.S. alliance has reached “unprecedented heights” as the two nations' economic ties, which began in military security, have now expanded to technology and space exploration.

“I can honestly say that the relationship between the two countries is the best that I have witnessed,” said Park at a luncheon event Tuesday hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (Amcham) to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Korea's bilateral alliance with the United States.

“Korea has emerged as the leading FDI investor in the United States, contributing more than $100 billion since 2021. U.S. companies are continuing to make sizable investments here in Korea.”

Park pointed out that the two countries' alliance has expanded its scope greatly.

“Just this month, we successfully convened the Korea-U.S. space forum with experts, policymakers and industry representatives from the two countries,” Park said.

"[I explored] the exciting potential for space cooperation between our governments and companies. This demonstrates that sky is no longer the limit of our alliance.”

Park also addressed latest trilateral alliance formed between Korea, the United States and Japan at Camp David back in August. The minister believes that those ties will remain, unwavering, despite political changes.

“Because of many diverse challenges that are happening at the same time, no one country can solve this problem alone, like the war in Ukraine, conflict in the Middle East, the pandemic and supply chain disruptions. So we need to make sure that rules-based international order is properly maintained, especially in the Indo-Pacific region,” he said.

“Despite any possible political changes in the three countries, there's no question that the serious commitment made at Camp David will be sustainable. This is the commitment made by the top leaders of three countries for the sake of our common values, which transcend politics.”

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]