South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun praised Türkiye for playing an increasingly strategic role on the global stage, underlining the strengthening ties between Seoul and Ankara.
Speaking to Anadolu Agency (AA), Cho said South Korea and Türkiye are steadily strengthening their international standing in areas where they have strong defense industries and continue mutually beneficial cooperation through various projects, "especially the Altay main battle tank project."
"We hope this mutually beneficial cooperation will expand further in the coming period," Cho said, and stressed that it will not only strengthen the defense industry capacities of both countries but also make significant contributions to "reinforcing regional and global peace and security."
Recalling that the (South Korean and Turkish) leaders emphasized during their meeting that the two countries are advancing with determination toward the goal of achieving a strong global position in the defense industry, Cho said they agreed to continue cooperation in various areas, including joint production, technological cooperation and exchange programs in education, based on mutual trust.
"We closely follow Türkiye's long-standing and determined efforts to strengthen its own defense industry capacity," Cho said, noting that especially exceeding $10 billion in defense exports for the first time last year and "successfully hosting IDEF, the largest defense industry fair in its history, are considered concrete indicators of remarkable progress in this field."
Cho emphasized that rather than pursuing a mere balancing policy amid competition between the U.S. and China, the South Korean government adopts a pragmatic approach based on assessing national interests from a holistic, organic and multidimensional perspective.
He noted that while developing new growth dynamics based on cooperation with China on an equal footing, they also aim to strengthen their own industrial competitiveness, noting that Seoul aims to elevate its economy by enhancing cooperation with the U.S. in advanced technology fields and boosting the competitive capacity of its industries.
Recalling that South Korean President Lee Jae Myung recently visited both China and Japan, Cho said they aim to continue strong and mature cooperation with these countries with determination in the coming period.
Deep trust, friendship
He underlined that Türkiye is a brother country that fought to defend South Korea's freedom and democracy by sending nearly 20,000 soldiers during the Korean War, noting that the memory of this sacrifice and solidarity still forms "the foundation of deep trust and friendship between the two countries."
The minister stated that within the framework of relations built on this historical legacy, cooperation has been steadily developed in many fields, particularly political, economic and cultural.
Cho emphasized that Lee's official visit to Türkiye last year, the first in 13 years, was an extremely important occasion reaffirming the shared will to further advance the strategic partnership, adding that the visit also resulted in an agreement to increase high-level contacts and dialogue between the two countries.
Increasing trade volume
He noted that in the economic field, the two countries have steadily increased trade volume based on the South Korea-Türkiye Free Trade Agreement (FTA), which entered into force in 2013, reaching a record high of $10.4 billion in 2023.
"Building on the cooperation experience accumulated to date, the parties aim to expand cooperation beyond existing areas into future strategic sectors such as defense industry, nuclear energy, biotechnology, renewable energy and artificial intelligence," Cho said.
He added that in the coming period the two countries will continue to steadily deepen their strategic partnership across politics, economy, society and culture, "further strengthening concrete cooperation that contributes to regional and global stability."
Dialogue with North Korea
Noting that communication between North and South Korea has been disrupted for a long time, Cho said his country has been making multidimensional and determined efforts to reopen dialogue channels with North Korea.
He said that despite the lack of a positive response from North Korea so far, the government believes a long-term approach is essential to reduce tensions, rebuild mutual trust and keep dialogue open on the Korean Peninsula. The foreign minister added that Seoul will continue determined diplomatic efforts, including in close cooperation with countries such as Türkiye that support peace, coexistence, and development on the Korean Peninsula.
Türkiye's mediating role
"We expressed that we welcomed the achievement of a cease-fire in Gaza and that we appreciated Türkiye's mediation efforts," Cho said, noting that South Korea has articulated a clear stance on developments in Gaza.
He also expressed hope that the cease-fire becomes permanent and that the humanitarian situation improves, and noted that South Korea expects the Gaza Peace Plan to be implemented without delay and in full.
Cho said his country has provided humanitarian aid to civilians affected by events in Gaza and will continue to actively contribute to international efforts to establish peace in the Middle East.
As for the recognition of the Palestinian state, Cho said the South Korean government consistently supports a two-state solution and actively participates in international discussions on this issue. He added that they plan to contribute more actively to the implementation of the two-state solution in the coming period.
The minister also emphasized that they consistently maintain their position that Ukraine's sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence must be respected, and that they attach great importance to the international community's efforts to end the war and establish lasting peace.
Türkiye at strategic crossroad
Cho stated that Türkiye is at a strategic crossroads connecting Europe and the Middle East, noting that Ankara's strategic value is increasingly coming to the fore in terms of diversifying global supply chains and establishing regional production hubs.
He stressed that in this context, Türkiye is considered to have the quality of an important hub for production investments by Korean companies and expansion into third countries.
Recalling that more than 200 Korean companies operating in various sectors have invested in Türkiye, Cho said the government will continue to provide the necessary policy and institutional support to further increase Korean companies' investments and commercial activities in Türkiye, thereby contributing to the further development of economic cooperation between the two countries.
The minister also noted that interest in Korean culture is rising in Türkiye, while interest in Turkish cuisine, culture and art is steadily expanding in South Korea.
He pointed out that the number of mutual tourists continues to increase based on the two countries' rich tourism resources and cultural appeal.
Cho said that ahead of the 70th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2027, South Korea aims to further deepen people-to-people ties with Türkiye by expanding youth exchange programs, boosting tourism and strengthening cooperation among educational and cultural institutions, with the goal of fostering deeper mutual understanding and building a sustainable relationship grounded in mutual respect and trust.