By Park Si-soo
This year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations forged between Korea and Mexico.
To celebrate the memorable moment, President Lee Myung-bak and Mexican President Felipe Calderon Hinojosa exchanged a message to reaffirm their close cooperation to move relations forward, the Cheong Wa Dae said Thursday.
Lee expressed hope in the message for greater cooperation in trade, energy and infrastructure development, noting that the two countries have mutually supplementary industrial structures.
President Calderon echoed the view, saying the two sides have great potential to bolster their strategic partnership. Lee proposed closer cooperation on regional and global issues, such as climate change, U.N. reform and green growth.
Calderon said Korea is an important partner Mexico can work together with to promote democracy, human rights, peace and environmental protection.
He also said the two sides have cooperated closely as key allies in promoting sustainable growth and improving global justice and equality, and this year is a significant point in reaffirming the friendly cooperative relations.
Lee hoped for Mexico’s successful hosting of the G20 summit in June.
The two countries established diplomatic ties in 1962. Historians say the bilateral relations started from 1905 when 1,033 Koreans moved to the North American state. Roughly 13,000 Korean people live in Mexico. Last year alone, the bilateral trade volume reaches $11.31 billion.