Korea and Costa Rica agreed Tuesday to work together to lay the groundwork for launching free trade talks, saying their economies are mutually supplementary and have great potential for cooperation, a joint statement said.
Korean President Lee Myung-bak and Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla Miranda reached the agreement during summit talks in Seoul that also covered cooperation in green growth, regional security, and other bilateral and international matters.
Chinchilla, who took office in 2010 as the first female president of the Latin American nation, arrived in South Korea on Sunday for a four-day visit. She is the first Costa Rican leader to visit South Korea in 11 years, and this year marks the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the nations.
Lee and Chinchilla agreed that economic cooperation between the two countries has been expanding "in an appropriate direction" and shared an understanding that there is big potential for enhancing cooperation in light of the mutually supplementary trade structure, the statement said.
"The leaders of the two countries agreed to put in joint efforts to create the conditions (for expanding economic cooperation between the two sides) to lead to free trade negotiations," it said.
Lee and Chinchilla agreed to expand cooperation in green growth.
In particular, Lee said Costa Rica's accession to an international pact calls for transforming the Global Green Growth Institute, a Seoul-established think tank on the environment friendly cause, into an international organization.
Costa Rica and 15 other nations, such as Denmark and Australia, have signed a pact to upgrade GGGI. The institute is expected to officially launch as an official international organization during a U.N. ministerial meeting on climate change in Seoul in October after the signatory countries ratify the convention.
Chinchilla also backed Seoul's policy on North Korea, agreeing that Pyongyang should faithfully carry out U.N. Security Council resolutions and its international obligations, the statement said. The two leaders agreed to continue cooperation to get the North to give up its nuclear and missile programs, it said.
Lee welcomed Costa Rica's intention to join the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development while recognizing the country's potential for contributions to the organization, the statement said.
During an official dinner following the summit, Lee said Costa Rica is "an ally that has proactively supported South Korea's effort to secure peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula," according to Seoul's presidential office.
"The two countries' close relationship is based upon shared notions of universal values such as democracy, market economy, human rights and peace."
Praising the Central American country for its high level of education, security and natural preservation, among other things, Lee also said its competitiveness would make "South Korean companies interested in making an investment in the nation," his office said.
Expressing gratitude for "South Koreans' kindness," Chinchilla said she was "happy to meet many people in diverse fields and learn more about South Korea via the visit," according to the office. (Yonhap)