Lee: South Korea and Mongolia Are Strategic Partners in Critical Minerals, Advanced Industries, Energy and Supply Chains

[Financial News Ulaanbaatar (Mongolia)=Reporter Sung Seok-woo]President Lee Jae-myung, who is on a state visit to Mongolia, met with local Koreans on the 10th local time and said that "the Republic of Korea and Mongolia have opened a new era as strategic partners continuing cooperation in many areas, including critical minerals, advanced industries, energy, supply chains and digital transformation."
At a luncheon meeting with the Korean community held at a hotel in Ulaanbaatar that day, Lee greeted attendees by saying, "It is a great pleasure to meet you here in Mongolia, the country of endless blue skies and vast grasslands."
Addressing Koreans living in Mongolia, Lee said, "Intergovernmental exchanges usually begin with governments building a framework for cooperation, and then people-to-people exchanges and collaboration follow. But the case of South Korea and Mongolia was a little different. I understand that many Koreans had already come to this land even before cooperation between our two governments began in earnest after diplomatic ties were established in 1990." He added, "You built schools, shared technology and started businesses, while earning trust alongside your Mongolian neighbors." He continued, "I have heard that in Ulaanbaatar, Korean shops, restaurants, cafes, academies and businesses have clustered together to form a vibrant Korean economic community, so much so that it is called Mongtan New Town."
He went on to say, "The reason we have been able to become such close friends is that Korea and Mongolia share similar qualities." He added, "The nomadic spirit of the Mongolian people, who set out to find new paths across the vast steppe, and the pioneering spirit of Koreans, who root themselves anywhere in the world and create new paths, are a major link that allows us to understand one another naturally." He continued, "You seem to have endured well. Because you have a forward-looking spirit that embraces challenge rather than staying put, Koreans have been able to take deep root in Mongolian society." He emphasized, "And I believe you have faithfully served as a bridge connecting the two countries."
Lee said, "Cooperation between our two countries will deepen further in the future," adding, "And at the center of that will always be the Korean community in Mongolia."
Lee said, "Since the beginning of this year, our government has been conducting a comprehensive survey of complaints and requests from overseas Korean communities around the world." He continued, "Through this, we are collecting a great deal of information about the various difficulties and areas for improvement that overseas Koreans face locally, including residency systems, administrative procedures, economic activities, education and the environment." He explained, "Our government will approach overseas Korean policy with a strong sense of responsibility so that you can feel pride as citizens of the Republic of Korea."
In particular, he added, "We will work to ensure that our diplomatic missions on the ground become a reliable platform that listens to your voices, explores solutions together and serves as a familiar neighbor to you."
west@fnnews.com Sung Seok-woo Reporter