Date
2012.08.29
South Korea's finance minister proposed resuming talks with Russia on bilateral economic partnership in order to establish a stronger cooperation framework between the two countries, his officials here said Wednesday.
Bahk Jae-wan made the offer during the 12th economy, science and technology joint meeting with his Russian counterpart in Moscow, according to the officials. He is on a trip to Russia to discuss cooperation and attend a meeting of finance ministers from the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC).
Talks were held in 2007-2008 for the Bilateral Economic Partnership Agreement between the two, a similar form of a free trade agreement. Just two rounds of meetings were held before talks came to a halt without significant headway.
The proposal comes as Seoul is making efforts to strengthen its foothold in Russia, which is emerging as a market with high potential after it joined the World Trade Organization last December.
"Russia is a country with high potential that has a significant amount of natural resources, outstanding science technologies and a vast domestic market," Bahk told Korean business leaders working in Russia during a separate meeting.
Both sides agreed to expand cooperation in the Far East and Siberia region by working together to develop energy, construction and transportation facilities, the officials said.
They also promised to work together in nuclear power, space science and IT, while cooperation will be pursued as well to boost investment in the agriculture, fishery, medical and construction sectors, they noted.