1. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun held the 8th Republic of Korea-Republic of Chile high-level political consultation meeting with Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Chile Carolina Valdivia in Seoul on April 3, and discussed the ROK-Chile relations; ways to increase economic and substantive cooperation; multilateral cooperation; and the situations on the Korean Peninsula and in Latin America and the Caribbean.

2. The two sides took note that the ROK and Chile, sharing universal values such as democracy and human rights, have been increasing cooperation in a variety of areas, and especially economic and substantive cooperation has expanded significantly following the conclusion of the ROK-Chile FTA in 2003.

o Vice Minister Valdivia stressed that Chile was creating the most favorable legal and economic conditions for foreign investment in Latin America and the Caribbean, and hoped that the ROK’s investment in Chile would continue to expand.

3. The two sides discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in four key areas (e-government, the Fourth Industrial Revolution, response to climate change, and cyber security) which were discussed at the ROK-Chile summit, held on the occasion of the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly in September last year.

o The two sides especially noted that the governments of the two countries were focusing on growth through “innovation,” and agreed to step up cooperation, sharing various examples of innovation policies, including those regarding the Fourth Industrial Revolution, and science and technology.

4. Vice Minister Cho requested the active role of Chile, the Pacific Alliance’s next chair, to swiftly begin negotiations on the ROK’s accession to the Alliance as an associate member, which the ROK is pursuing to establish institutional bases for further cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean.

5. In addition, the two sides took note that the ROK-Chile FTA is at the center of trade between the two countries, and agreed to continue to work together to hold constructive discussions in the second round of negotiations on the improvement of the FTA, to be held this year.

6. Vice Minister Cho recalled that the coal-fired power plant construction project won by a Korean company in 2006 in Chile was the ROK’s first infrastructure project in Latin America and the Caribbean, and asked for continued cooperation to help more Korean companies participate in infrastructure projects in Chile, including the Chacao four-lane Suspension Bridge project that is underway.

o Vice Minister Valdivia hoped to see more cooperation between Chile and Korean companies with advanced technologies not only in infrastructure construction, but also in telecommunications, including 5G network and optical cable construction.

7. The two sides took note that bilateral exchanges were expanding to cultural and people-to-people exchanges, with K-pop and Korean food gaining great popularity in Chile, and agreed to explore various measures to further promote bilateral exchanges in the areas.

8. Vice Minister Valdivia talked about what preparations were being made for the APEC summit and the 25th session of the Conference of the Parties (COP 25) to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change, to be held in Chile this year, and requested the ROK’s cooperation to ensure successful meetings.

9. The two sides exchanged views on the situations on the Korean Peninsula and in Latin America and the Caribbean. Vice Minister Cho explained the current situation on the Korean Peninsula, and the ROK government’s efforts to achieve complete denuclearization and to establish a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula. The Chilean side expressed support for such efforts.

10. The 8th high-level political consultation meeting, which came about three years after the 7th consultation meeting held in Santiago in 2016, served as an opportunity to review bilateral relations in a wide range of areas, and to discuss ways to step up cooperation between the two countries.

* unofficial translation