The leaders of South Korea and India agreed Monday to elevate bilateral ties to “a whole new level,” while acknowledging that the partnership has yet to realize its full potential, Cheong Wa Dae said.
President Lee Jae Myung and Prime Minister Narendra Modi reached the agreement during their summit at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Monday, national security adviser Wi Sung-lac said Tuesday.
“The two leaders assessed that although bilateral relations have developed considerably over the past decade since their elevation to a ‘special strategic partnership’ in 2015, they have still not lived up to their full potential for cooperation,” according to Wi.
“They agreed to use this meeting as an opportunity to elevate bilateral relations to a whole new level.”
During a closed-door meeting attended by a limited number of aides, Lee reiterated that South Korea-India ties have lagged behind the scale of India’s population and economic weight as one of the world’s largest economies.
“President Lee noted that, relative to India’s population and GDP, South Korea’s presence remains limited, with only about 12,000 Korean residents and some 670 Korean companies operating there, showing that bilateral ties have remained stagnant,” Wi said in a written statement on the outcome of the summit.
