S. Korea, Cuba agree to open embassies soon

S. Korea, Cuba hold first high-level diplomatic talks since forging ties

South Korea’s Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Chung Byung-won (right) shakes hands with Carlos Miguel Pereira, Director-General of the General Division of Bilateral Affairs at the Cuban Foreign Ministry, during bilateral talks held Wednesday at the building of the Foreign Ministry in Seoul. (Yonhap)

South Korea and Cuba held their first high-level talks in Seoul since the establishment of diplomatic ties in February, with a focus on expanding cooperation across various fields, including the economy, regional and global matters, and the opening of embassies, according to the Foreign Ministry in Seoul.

South Korea’s Deputy Minister for Political Affairs Chung Byung-won met with Carlos Miguel Pereira, Director-General of the General Division of Bilateral Affairs at the Cuban Foreign Ministry, at 10 a.m. at the South Korean Foreign Ministry.

"The bilateral consultation between South Korea and Cuba holds significance as the first official meeting between high-level officials from both countries since the establishment of diplomatic relations, where they discussed various areas of cooperation," the Foreign Ministry in Seoul said in a statement.

"Based on the results of today's consultation, the two sides agreed to continue communicating on potential areas of cooperation and shared the need to activate high-level consultations between foreign ministries of the two countries."

The recent bilateral talks covered a wide range of issues, including the current state of bilateral ties, the establishment of permanent diplomatic missions, substantial cooperation in various fields, coordination on regional matters and on a global stage, according to the Foreign Ministry.

"Both sides assessed the current stage of exchanges between the two countries, including development cooperation, economic cooperation, human-to-human exchanges and sports and cultural cooperation, and agreed to further reinvigorate such cooperation through close communication," the Foreign Ministry said.

"The Cuban side, particularly, expressed their expectations to enhance substantial cooperation in fields including Korean companies' investment in Cuba, expanding bilateral trade, agriculture, energy and health care," the ministry added.

Chung and Pereira also committed to strengthening cooperation on regional matters and on a global stage.

The first high-level diplomatic talks between South Korea and Cuba since establishing diplomatic relations on Feb. 14 takes place at the building of the Foreign Ministry in Seoul on Wednesday. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)

Another crucial point of discussion was the advancement of plans to establish permanent diplomatic missions in each other's capitals, Seoul and Havana, an agreement that was first reached in late April.

"Both sides agreed to actively cooperate to ensure the completion of setting up permanent diplomatic missions in each other's capitals as soon as possible, to serve as a solid foundation for the development of bilateral relations," the Foreign Ministry said.

Chung said South Korea plans to open a temporary office in Havana in the first half of this year to expedite the opening of its embassy, with diplomats set to arrive in Havana this week to that end.

Pereira said that the Cuban team, which commenced its activities in Korea last month, is working on the necessary procedures to open the Cuban Embassy in Seoul as soon as possible, according to the Foreign Ministry in Seoul. Mario Alzugaray Rodriguez, Deputy Head of Mission of the Embassy of Cuba in China, has been preparing for the embassy opening since his arrival in Seoul on May 12.

Before the start of the bilateral talks, there was a divergence between Chung and Pereira on whether to include North Korean issues as a topic on the agenda for discussion.

Chung told reporters the talks would cover the "overall situation of inter-Korean relations."

When asked if the talks covered North Korea, Pereira said he "came to talk about South Korea," emphasizing that the talks would primarily focus on bilateral relations. Cuba and North Korea have traditionally maintained friendly relations as socialist countries with single-party systems.

This trip by Pereira marks the first official delegation visit by Cuba since Seoul and Havana established diplomatic ties, according to the Foreign Ministry in Seoul.

Pereira's trip aimed to deliver a presentation at the 2024 Korea-Latin America Future Cooperation Forum on Monday, an event hosted yearly by the South Korean Foreign Ministry since 2008.

By Ji Da-gyum(dagyumji@heraldcorp.com)