Outcomes of the ROK-Panama Foreign Ministers' Talks

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APEC 2005 Korea

2005-11-17 15:19

Seoul--(뉴스와이어)--Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Ban Ki-moon held the ROK-Panama Foreign Ministers' Talks with Minister of Foreign Affairs of Panama, Samuel Lewis Navarro in Busan on September 16, and discussed various issues of mutual concern such as ways to further promote bilateral cooperation and major international issues.

The relations between the ROK and Panama have been steadily enhanced since the establishment of diplomatic ties in 1962. The ROK-Panama Summit (Costa Rica, September 2005) and the Foreign Ministers' Talks paved the way for a new cooperative relationship for co-prosperity of the 21st Century, based on the traditional friendly and cooperative ties between the two countries.

The two ministers shared a view that great efforts are needed to further promote trade and investment between the two countries for bilateral cooperation in the area of economy and trade, and agreed to continue close cooperation in various areas including IT. Minister Lewis asked for Korean companies' interest and participation in the expansion project of the Panama Canal, which is an engineering project with the expected cost of $5-8 billion. He also conveyed Panama's hope to join APEC and asked for the ROK's support. Minister Ban expressed the ROK's willingness to provide financial assistance for the health-care modernization project and the establishment of a disaster alert system in Panama.

The two ministers expressed their satisfaction with the maintenance of bilateral cooperative ties in the international arena, and agreed to make close consultations for UN reforms and the ROK's bid to host the Winter Olympic Games in Pyeongchang.

The ROK-Panama Foreign Ministers' Talks are expected to further promote cooperative ties with Panama, which is a geopolitical hub of distribution in Latin America and Caribbean.

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