Azerbaijan, South Korea agree to expand cooperation projects - UPDATE

Foreign ministers of South Korea and Azerbaijan have agreed to work closely together to develop mutually beneficial cooperation projects combining rich resources of the Caspian nation and advanced Korean technologies, the South Korean foreign ministry said Wednesday.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov held talks with his South Korean counterpart Kim Sung-hwan Tuesday evening after arriving in Seoul earlier in the day. His two-day visit also includes meetings with Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik and National Assembly Speaker Park Hee-tae Wednesday.

The two top diplomats "agreed to cooperate closely to develop a mutually beneficial cooperation model that combines Azerbaijan's rich resources and South Korea's world-class technologies," the ministry said in a statement.

They also expressed satisfaction that the relations between the two countries have steadily moved forward in political, economic and cultural areas since the establishment of diplomatic relations in 1992, it said.

Kim praised Azerbaijan's efforts to reinforce road, railway and other infrastructures to become a hub of energy, shipping and information and communication in the Caucasus-Caspian region. Kim also asked Mammadyarov to help South Korean firms participate in those projects, the ministry said.

Kim stressed that Azerbaijan is one of South Korea's key development cooperation partners and that Seoul plans to take part in the country's water recycling project aimed at addressing its shortage of water, the ministry said.

The two ministers also agreed to organize various cultural projects to mark the 20th anniversary of the bilateral relations in 2012, the ministry said.

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December 14
18:33

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister Elmar Mammadyarov and his South Korean Counterpart Kim Sung-hwan held talks in Seoul on Tuesday on ways to increase cooperation in economic and cultural sectors as well as on regional and international issues, the foreign ministry said.

Mammadyarov arrived in Seoul earlier Tuesday for a two-day visit.

Ahead of the talks, Kim welcomed Mammadyarov, saying he visited Azerbaijan's capital, Baku, a few times when he was ambassador to Uzbekistan while concurrently serving as ambassador to Azerbaijan. Kim noted that oil mining equipment on the coast of Azerbaijan was quite impressive.

Mammadyarov said the relations between the two countries have briskly moved forward since Kim last visited Azerbaijan in 2004 and that he wants to invite Kim to the country next year.

The two ministers planned to have dinner together with South Korean businessmen working in Azerbaijan.

Azerbaijani Foreign Minister noted at the meeting that Azerbaijan attaches great importance to comprehensive development of relations with South Korea as a prosperous country in the region of East Asia, the press center of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry reported. He also noted the need for more private mutual visits of people of science, culture and business.

Mentioning the high rate of economic cooperation between the two countries, the Korean Minister expressed his country's interest in developing relations with Azerbaijan in the future as well.

According to the Minister, Korea has identified Azerbaijan as a priority country for 2011-2013. At the meeting, Elmar Mamedyarov informed his counterpart about the negotiation process around the settlement of Armenian-Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, stated the position of the country to address the problem.

In his turn, Korean Minister informed his counterpart about the processes taking place in the region over recent years, as well as the position of the Republic of Korea.

The sides also noted the need for cooperation in the humanitarian sphere, particularly between the Azerbaijan Diplomatic Academy and the Institute of Foreign Affairs and National Security Korea.


/Trend/