UAE and Korea agree to boost economic ties

31/05/2016 05:25 AST

The 5th UAE-Korea Economic Joint Committee concluded in Abu Dhabi on Monday. The two-day event focused on enhancing economic cooperation in sectors such as high technology, innovation, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), industry and tourism of mutual importance to the economic policies and plans of the two countries.

Sultan Bin Saeed Al Mansouri, UAE Minister of Economy, led the UAE delegation, while the delegates from the Republic of Korea (ROK) were headed by Ilho Yoo, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Strategy and Finance. This year’s session included a preparatory technical meeting held yesterday under the supervision of Mohammed Bin Abdul Aziz Al Shehhi, Undersecretary of the UAE Ministry of Economic for Economic Affairs, and Hoe Jeong Kim, Director General for International Economic Affairs at the ROK Ministry of Strategy and Finance. A total of eight (8) roundtable sessions were conducted to establish frameworks for cooperation between the two countries.

The UAE delegation also included other officials from the Ministry of Economy, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Ministry of Infrastructure and Development, the Ministry of Climate Change and Environment, the Ministry of Health and Prevention, the General Civil Aviation Authority, the Federal Transport Authority, Masdar, and other federal and local government agencies and chambers.

Al Mansouri gave a speech welcoming the Korean delegation and commending the productive bilateral relations between their countries. He noted how their commercial exchange for 2015 was able to reach $8.5 billion - inclusive of free zone activities - despite a slowdown in global economic growth.

The Minister added that South Korea’s economic development, especially in the sectors of industry, modern technology and innovation, is a model worth taking advantage of in terms of experience and knowledge exchange. He also emphasized the productive cooperation of their countries which has turned the UAE into South Korea’s largest trading partner in the MENA region and its second largest oil supplier.

The Gulf Today