"Cooperation in Lithium and Uranium Development"... 'Seoul Declaration' Adopted

[Anchor]

President Lee Jae-myung hosted the first Korea-Central Asia multilateral summit involving five Central Asian nations. The 'Seoul Declaration', containing a mid- to long-term vision for cooperation among the participating countries, was adopted.

Here is reporter Park Ye-rin.

[Reporter]

Commemorating the first Korea-Central Asia Summit held in Seoul, President Lee Jae-myung joined hands with the leaders of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkmenistan.

Mentioning the ties between South Korea and Central Asia that have continued since ancient times, President Lee proposed opening a new Silk Road era.

[President Lee Jae-myung: The "Silk Road spirit" of Central Asia, which connected the people, technology, and culture of the East and West into one, is needed more desperately than ever.]

At the summit, particular weight was placed on expanding economic cooperation.

Plans were announced to establish "Korea Desks" in the five Central Asian countries to resolve difficulties faced by businesses, and to set up "Rare Metals Centers" locally in these resource-rich nations—including Kazakhstan, which possesses the world's second-largest uranium reserves—to strengthen full-cycle cooperation spanning the exploration, smelting, processing, and production of critical minerals.

[President Lee Jae-myung: If Central Asia's abundant mineral resources, such as lithium and uranium, meet our manufacturing capabilities in batteries and semiconductors, we will be able to lead the global market together.]

President Lee and the leaders of the five Central Asian countries also adopted the 'Seoul Declaration', outlining this multilateral mid- to long-term vision for cooperation, and agreed to regularly hold the Korea-Central Asia summit every two years.

The presidential office evaluated that the meeting served as an opportunity to broaden the horizon of South Korean diplomacy across the Eurasian continent and expand future-oriented partnerships with Central Asian nations in areas including the economy and security.

Video by Jeong Sang-bo and Ha Ryung
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.