S. Korea, Papua New Guinea pledge stronger ties on 50th anniv. of diplomatic relations

SEOUL, May 19 (Yonhap) — The foreign ministers of South Korea and Papua New Guinea have exchanged congratulatory letters marking 50 years of the establishment of diplomatic ties and pledged closer cooperation to further enhance bilateral relations, Seoul’s foreign ministry said Tuesday.

In his message, Foreign Minister Cho Hyun praised the steady development of bilateral cooperation over the past 50 years across various fields and expressed hope the two countries would continue working closely together to further strengthen their relations.

In his congratulatory letter, Papua New Guinea Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko highlighted their strong cooperative ties in trade and investment, people-to-people exchanges, and cooperation in international organizations, among other fields.

The minister added Papua New Guinea regards South Korea as an important strategic economic partner and expressed hope for expanded cooperation in future-oriented sectors, such as clean energy, digital transformation and climate change response.

Tkatchenko also welcomed the planned opening of a Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) office in his country, the ministry said.