French President Emmanuel Macron and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung have agreed to boost defence cooperation and work together to address the economic and energy crises triggered by the war in Iran.
"President Macron and I agreed to share policy-related experiences and strategies in order to jointly address the economic and energy crises triggered by the Middle East war," Lee said on Friday after a joint summit in Seoul during Macron's two-day state visit to South Korea.
Macron arrived on Thursday after visiting Japan, in the first official trip by a French president since 2015.
French officials have said the visit aims to strengthen France's strategic and economic role in the region at a time of international and regional tensions.
The leaders confirmed their commitment to bolstering energy security including by collaborating to secure maritime transport routes through the Strait of Hormuz, he said.
Like other Asian economies, South Korea relies heavily on energy imports, including through the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has effectively shut down the waterway in retaliation for US-Israeli attacks that began on 28 February, driving up energy prices and stoking fears of a global recession.
Macron said Thursday that it would be unrealistic to launch a military operation to force open the strait, after US President Donald Trump challenged US allies to work towards reopening it.
Macron rejects military plan as allies push to reopen Strait of Hormuz
Defence ties
Macron said after Friday's summit that France and South Korea, both major arms manufacturers, aimed to boost their defence ties.
"What we want to do is give this cooperation a contemporary dimension," Macron said, citing joint exercises and more collaboration on production and critical military capabilities.
"On both sides, we want to equip ourselves with greater strategic depth in military production."
Lee also said the countries will further expand cooperation in security fields such as aerospace and defence.
South Korea and France are due to sign a number of preliminary agreements to cooperate in sectors including critical minerals, semiconductors, quantum technologies, nuclear energy and wind power, Lee's office said.
The countries also aimed to increase bilateral trade to $20 billion by 2030 from $15 billion in 2025.
Lee underlined that South Korea's state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power and French companies Orano and Framatome are set to sign a memoranda of understanding that would help secure fuel supplies for Korean nuclear power plants and lay the foundation for joint entry into the global nuclear market.
Macron will also meet the CEOs of Samsung, Naver and Hyundai Motor during the trip as he seeks to boost French exports to South Korea and attract Korean investment into France’s industrial and technology sectors, according to his office.
(with Reuters)
