Lee says S. Korea, Argentina will usher in new era of cooperation

President Lee Jae Myung speaks during a meeting with members of the South Korean community in Argentina at a hotel in Buenos Aires, July 31. Yonhap)

BUENOS AIRES — President Lee Jae Myung said Friday that South Korea and Argentina will usher in a new era of cooperation, saying closer bilateral collaboration is strategically more important than ever.

Lee made the remarks at a meeting with members of the South Korean community in Argentina, the final stop on his three-nation South America tour aimed at strengthening cooperation on critical mineral supply chains and others.

"I am confident that a new era of cooperation between Argentina and South Korea will fully unfold," the president said.

"Amid the changing international order, from the artificial intelligence revolution to shifts in global supply chains, strategic bilateral cooperation is more important than ever," he said.

Lee stressed that cooperation between South Korea and Argentina is entering a stage of tangible results, with bilateral collaboration expanding to critical minerals, including lithium, as well as energy and infrastructure.

The remarks came after Lee held a summit with Argentine President Javier Milei earlier Friday, during which the two leaders agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation on critical minerals and South Korea's imports of Argentine crude oil, beginning next year.