President Lee Jae-myung held a phone call with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum on Friday, with the two leaders agreeing to strengthen bilateral exchanges and cooperation.
"The two leaders agreed to work together to enhance cultural exchange cooperation between the two countries," Presidential Chief Spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said. Lee and Sheinbaum exchanged impressions about the tens of thousands of people who gathered at Zocalo Square on the 6th to see BTS, who visited the presidential palace ahead of their Mexico City concert, calling it "very impressive," Kang said.
"As Mexico is Korea's largest trading and investment partner in Latin America, the free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations between the two countries need to resume swiftly," Lee said. "Amid growing uncertainty in the global economy following the Middle East war, I hope our two countries, which share similar positions, will further strengthen cooperation in various fields including energy." Lee also congratulated Mexico on hosting the World Cup for the third time in June and wished the event success.
Sheinbaum responded that she has "great interest in advancing substantive cooperation with Korea, including in the economy." Kang said, "President Lee accepted President Sheinbaum's invitation to visit Mexico, and the two agreed to proceed with working-level preparations so that they can discuss ways to develop bilateral relations in greater depth."
