In line with efforts to make a success of his 'New Southern Policy', President Moon says India is a 'key partner' for the policy that encompasses cooperation in various fields.
Our Cha Sang-mi reports on the South Korean leader's interview with The Times of India.
Seoul's top office shared President Moon Jae-in's written interview with an Indian daily newspaper, just before the president left for his four-day state visit to the South Asian country.
In his interview with The Times of India, President Moon referred to India as a key partner for his "New Southern Policy" that encompasses cooperation in infrastructure, defense, science and the economy, as he hailed the nation as the most populous democracy in the world.
President Moon wrote that (quote) "he highly values cooperation with South Asian countries."
And that's why he sent special envoys to India and ASEAN for the first time last year.
'Building future partnership for People, Prosperity, and Peace' is the vision for the "New Southern Policy".
As for South Korea-India economic cooperation, President Moon said the fields are boundless, but expressed his wish to see more collaboration with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiatives for "Make in India, Smart India, and Digital India".
This will be in the manufacturing, infrastructure and high-tech industries.
The South Korean leader also mentioned the hundreds of Korean companies doing business in India, including Samsung, LG, and Hyundai Motor Company, and added that start-ups and small and medium sized companies are also eyeing the vast Indian market.
He added that bilateral trade and investment should continue as the two sides keep upgrading the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, or CEPA, a free trade agreement between Seoul and New Delhi.
When asked about the South Korean government's direction to achieve peace on the Korean Peninsula in the wake of the two inter-Korean summits and the Pyongyang-Washington summit, President Moon vowed to follow through on the decisions made in those landmark meetings, as he quoted India's venerable figure Mahatma Gandhi, saying "There is no path to peace. Peace is the path."
President Moon also called on India to work together towards a lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula that will be passed on to the South Asian region.
Cha Sang-mi, Arirang News.
