South Korean President Lee Jae‑Myung said Monday that Seoul and New Delhi will deepen cooperation to secure stable supplies of energy resources and key raw materials as the two countries pursue closer ties amid geopolitical uncertainty.
Lee, on a three‑day state visit to India, spoke in New Delhi after talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi framed the summit around economic and strategic goals, and the leaders set a target to double bilateral trade to $50 billion by 2030.
They discussed closer collaboration across the Indo‑Pacific, and in sectors including shipbuilding, artificial intelligence and defense. Last year South Korea exported $19.2 billion in goods and services to India while importing $6.4 billion, leaving a $12.8 billion trade surplus for Seoul, according to the Korea International Trade Association.
Marking his first state visit to India since taking office and the first visit by a South Korean leader in eight years, Lee is also due to meet corporate leaders at business events during the trip. “The level of economic cooperation between South Korea and India is still very low,” he said at a dinner with the Korean community in New Delhi, adding that the two countries will expand ties and “make the relationship between South Korea and India completely different from what it is now.”
Lee described the pair as “increasingly important strategic partners,” citing supply‑chain instability and global economic strains, notably fallout from the Iran war. With disruptions to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz, South Korea has sought more naphtha from India; India supplied about 8% of South Korea’s naphtha imports last year.
After concluding the India visit, Lee is scheduled to travel to Vietnam.
Edited by: Alex Berry