President Lee Expresses Gratitude to Turkmenistan for Assisting Evacuation of Korean Nationals from Iran

President Lee Jae-myung stated during his summit with Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedow, "I deeply appreciate the special consideration shown to help our citizens and their families residing in Iran safely evacuate through Turkmenistan amid the volatile situation in the Middle East last year and this year."

President Lee made the remarks during the South Korea-Turkmenistan summit held at the Presidential Office today (the 15th), saying, "The warm helping hand extended during a difficult moment truly demonstrates the deep trust and friendship between our two countries."

Following US and Israeli attacks on Iran in June of last year and March of this year, the government evacuated South Korean nationals staying in Iran to the neighboring country of Turkmenistan via overland travel.

This expressed gratitude to the Turkmen side for its active cooperation during the evacuation at the time.

President Lee also noted, "Since establishing a mutually beneficial partnership in 2008, our two countries have built a solid foundation of practical cooperation over a long period, and I hope we can now use this as a stepping stone to produce results that our people can feel in their daily lives."

In response, President Berdimuhamedow replied, "I highly evaluate South Korea's continuous support for the various initiatives we have proposed on the international stage," adding, "Turkmenistan likewise supports South Korea's position on major international issues."

He also mentioned President Lee's North Korea initiative, the "END Initiative (Exchange, Normalization, Denuclearization)," stating, "I reaffirm my support for this today."

He emphasized, "We have consistently maintained and will continue to maintain the stance that all issues on the Korean Peninsula must be resolved through peaceful dialogue and diplomatic means."

Kang Yu-jung, Senior Presidential Spokesperson for Public Relations, stated in a written briefing that ways to cooperate in the energy and plant sectors were discussed during the closed-door summit that followed between the two leaders.

President Lee asked for President Berdimuhamedow's attention and support so that South Korean companies, backed by their accumulated experience and technological prowess, can continue to participate in large-scale plant and infrastructure projects in Turkmenistan.

The two leaders also shared the consensus that the "Revival of the Great Silk Road" vision—Turkmenistan's national logistics hub strategy as a country bordering the Caspian Sea and serving as a key transportation junction—will become a new growth engine connecting Central Asia and the Caspian Sea.

In the shipbuilding sector, they agreed to further expand mutually beneficial cooperation by jointly building ships locally in Turkmenistan, and decided to translate the potential for bilateral cooperation into tangible results in areas such as railways and new city construction.

President Lee requested President Berdimuhamedow's interest and cooperation to enable South Korean companies with superior technology and experience to participate in Turkmenistan's upcoming railway modernization projects.

Furthermore, sharing the understanding that efficient water resource management and combating desertification are crucial national tasks for Turkmenistan—much of whose territory consists of deserts—they agreed to strengthen cooperation linked with South Korea's smart water management technology.

Following the summit, the two sides signed a total of 13 agreements and Memorandums of Understanding (MOUs).

The documents signed this time cover the promotion of cooperation in plant infrastructure and transportation, the facilitation of institutional cooperation including investment protection, customs, intellectual property, and legal cooperation, as well as environmental and climate response areas such as water resources and forestry cooperation.

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.