Following the Prime Minister’s meeting with President Yoon of the
Republic of Korea today, a Downing Street spokesperson said:
“The Prime Minister welcomed President Yoon of the Republic of
Korea and a delegation of his ministers to Downing Street this
afternoon, as part of the President’s State Visit to the UK. The
Prime Minister was accompanied by the Deputy Prime Minister, Home
Secretary, Business and Trade Secretary, Science, Innovation and
Technology Secretary, and the Energy Security and Net Zero
Secretary.
“The Prime Minister and President Yoon welcomed the agreement of
the Downing Street Accord, which the Prime Minister described as
a ground breaking symbol of the strength of the relationship
between the UK and South Korea. The leaders agreed that the
Accord will cement and enhance our relationship in crucial areas
including security, technology and trade.
“The Prime Minister stressed the indivisibility of UK and Korean
security, and the leaders welcomed steps to increase our military
cooperation and elevate our defence relationship through today’s
agreement. The Prime Minister condemned North Korea’s launch of
ballistic missile technology yesterday. Both leaders expressed
their concern about the reported support that Russia is providing
to the DPRK. The Prime Minister stressed that South Korea can be
assured of UK solidarity in the face of daily threats.
“Both leaders welcomed the growing cooperation between our
countries to develop and harness the technologies of the future.
President Yoon praised the UK’s successful AI Safety Summit
earlier this month, and the leaders looked ahead to the next
iteration which will be co-hosted by both our countries. The
leaders also welcomed renewed cooperation between the UK and
South Korea on clean energy, particularly nuclear and wind.
“Today the UK and South Korea have launched negotiations on a
modernised Free Trade Agreement, building on our existing £10
billion trade relationship. The Prime Minister and President Yoon
hailed the strong economic links between our countries, as
evidenced by the £21 billion in new investment by South Korean
companies into the UK this week.
“The leaders discussed the strong cooperation between the UK and
South Korea on foreign policy issues. They agreed that our
countries share the same outlook and values on global affairs –
something that can be seen in the broad alignment of our
approaches to China, the situation in the Middle East and
Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine. The Prime Minister looked
forward to working with South Korea through their membership of
the UN Security Council from January.
“Finally, the Prime Minister reiterated his thanks to President
Yoon for making this State Visit to the UK. He paid tribute to
Korea’s journey to become a global, pivotal state over the 140
years of diplomatic friendship between our countries. The Prime
Minister underscored his pride that the UK is Korea’s closest
partner in Europe.”
