▲ President Lee Jae-myung and Romanian President Nicusor Dan shake hands before their summit at the NATO summit venue in Ankara, Türkiye, on July 8 (local time).
President Lee Jae-myung held a summit with Romanian President Nicusor Dan on the sidelines of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit to discuss ways to strengthen cooperation in the defense and nuclear power sectors between the two countries.
During the meeting held in Ankara, Türkiye, on July 8 (local time), President Lee told President Dan, "We already talked so much last night that this bilateral meeting does not feel like our first."
He was referring to their encounter at the official welcome dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his spouse the previous night.
President Dan responded, "As we discussed last night, I hope you will definitely visit Romania."
In response, President Lee said, "There is so much room to strengthen practical cooperation not only in the defense industry but also in nuclear power and various other fields, so it would be great for you to visit Korea, or for me to visit (Romania)."
When President Lee added, "I must visit to see if Dracula really exists" in response to the invitation to Romania, it drew laughter from both sides.
In the subsequent meeting, President Lee stated, "Romania is a truly important cooperation partner for the Republic of Korea, and progress is being made in trade as well as the defense industry."
He further noted, "I believe it is particularly meaningful that the K9 (self-propelled howitzer) will be produced locally (in Romania)."
Earlier this year, Hanwha Aerospace began construction of a local plant in Dambovita County, Romania, to produce K9 self-propelled howitzers and other equipment.
President Lee emphasized, "In the defense industry, we are focusing on practical cooperation, such as joint development and production, and entering third-party markets together, rather than just transactional relationships of buying and selling goods."
He was reiterating the 'Korea-NATO Defense Industry Cooperation Partnership 2.0' concept he proposed at the NATO Defense Industry Forum the previous day.
President Dan assessed that "the relationship between the two countries is very good, and many interesting investments are being made."
He added, "In the defense sector, Hanwha is also pursuing a project scheduled to begin early next year, and there are interesting developments regarding nuclear power as well."
"Korean companies are participating in the refurbishment project for two Romanian nuclear power plants, and we are also pursuing the construction of two new nuclear power plants," he added.
He further stated, "There will be many new opportunities for economic cooperation between the two countries."
(Photo: Yonhap News)
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