President Yoon Suk-yeol, who was visiting Hiroshima, Japan, to attend the G7 Sum­mit, had a South Korea-Aus­tralia Summit with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Alba­nese on May 19.

The leaders of both countries assessed that the relationship between Korea and Austra­lia has deepened in various fields since it was upgraded to a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership" in 2021. They also expressed the need for closer cooperation between the two countries as nations that share the values of freedom and con­tribute to peace in the region.

President Yoon stated that he aims to strengthen strategic communication with Austra­lia, a key like-minded country in implementing our govern­ment's Indo-Pacific strategy. Prime Minister Albanese ex­pressed his strong agreement and praised President Yoon's leadership in improving South Korea-Japan relations and leading peace and prosperity in the Indo-Pacific region.

The two leaders agreed that Korea and Australia, with mu­tually complementary economic structures, should continue their cooperation to ensure sta­ble trade in essential critical minerals necessary for the de­velopment of future advanced industries and to maintain global supply chain stability. They also decided to further expand cooperation in defense and defense industry based on past achievements.

Prime Minister Albanese ex­pressed his hope to concretize the expansion of defense coop­eration between the two coun­tries during the visit of the Australian Defense Minister next week and expressed his desire to increase the number of joint military exercises in the region that both countries participate in.

The leaders agreed to en­hance closer cooperation under the recognition that North Ko­rea's unprecedented provoca­tions pose a serious threat not only to the peace and prosper­ity of the Indo-Pacific region but also to the international community as a whole.

This summit is the second summit meeting between the two leaders. following the bi­lateral summit held in June last year on the occasion of the NATO Summit. It served as an opportunity to strengthen not only the friendly relations between the two countries but also the trust between the leaders.