Yoon, Mongolian PM hold talks on rare earths, infrastructure

President Yoon Suk Yeol met with Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene on Wednesday and agreed to boost cooperation in various sectors, such as rare earth minerals and infrastructure development, his office said.

Yoon held the talks with Luvsannamsrai, who is on a five-day official visit to South Korea, at the presidential office in Seoul, presidential spokesperson Lee Do-woon said in a written briefing.

During the talks, Yoon said the two sides have expanded ties in various sectors since establishing formal diplomatic relations in 1990.

The prime minister delivered a handwritten letter of Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh expressing the country’s support for South Korea’s bid to host the World Expo in the southern city of Busan in 2030.

In response, Yoon said hosting the expo will not only strengthen people-to-people exchanges, but will result in closer cooperation in various sectors, such as economy, tourism and culture.

Separately, Foreign Minister Park Jin also held talks with his Mongolian counterpart, Batmunkh Battsetseg, who delivered the Mongolian government’s support for Seoul’s push to host the expo, the foreign ministry said.

During their talks at the foreign ministry office in Seoul, Park expressed his thanks for the support, saying the event will serve as an opportunity for the Seoul government to share its vision in climate change response and cooperative development with the international society.

The two ministers also shared their push for the establishment of mutually beneficial cooperation in the international arena, such as the United Nations.

The talks come nearly six months after Park visited Ulaanbaatar in August.