By Ruy A. Valdés
Seoul, July 31 (EFE).- South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung visited Buenos Aires on Friday, the final stop on his South American tour, seeking closer cooperation in critical minerals, promoting a trade agreement with Mercosur and diversifying energy sources.
«Building on our successful cooperation on lithium production, our two countries will sign a memorandum of understanding on Critical Minerals Supply Chain Cooperation during this visit,» Lee said in an interview with EFE ahead of his summit with Argentine President Javier Milei.
The leader of Asia’s fourth-largest economy said the memorandum «aims to establish a cooperative framework for the entire critical minerals supply chain».
Lee highlighted South Korea’s advanced industrial capabilities, particularly in battery materials, saying the country would be the «optimal partner» for Argentina’s efforts to add value to its mineral resources.
He referred to the Sal de Oro project—operated by the Argentine subsidiary of the South Korean company POSCO in the provinces of Salta and Catamarca—as an example of cooperation, as the project covers the entire value chain, from lithium extraction and processing to the commercial production of lithium compounds.
One of the priorities of Lee’s tour is to restart negotiations on a trade agreement between South Korea and Mercosur, of which Argentina is a member, after talks launched in 2018 stalled five years ago.
During his visit to Brazil earlier this week, Lee and Brazil’s President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva agreed to seek the resumption of negotiations at the next Mercosur summit in December, pending support from the bloc’s other members.
Lee’s meeting with Milei, however, comes just days after the Argentine president launched a verbal attack on Lula, heightening tensions between the two countries.
In the EFE interview, conducted before the dispute, Lee acknowledged political differences within the region over trade policy and international affairs, including those between the leaders of Argentina and Brazil.
«(South American nations) have resolved territorial disputes through dialogue and compromise and established Mercosur to lower regional trade barriers,» Lee said.
The outbreak of war in the Middle East has underscored South Korea’s dependence on imported energy, with nearly 70 percent of its crude oil coming from the region.
Consequently, the South Korean government has made diversifying its sources of crude oil a national priority, stepping up contacts with Latin American countries.
“South Korea is looking to Argentina, which is going from being an energy importer to an exporter by expanding production in Vaca Muerta, a major shale oil and gas field,” Lee said.
He also highlighted that the South Korean refinery company HD Hyundai Oilbank purchased Argentine crude oil for the first time this year.
He noted that stable transportation conditions and the absence of maritime bottlenecks will allow Argentina to play a more significant role in the changing global energy landscape.
“I expect that this visit will serve as a new starting point for energy cooperation between South Korea and Argentina,” he added.
The president will conclude his South American tour on Saturday before departing for Germany. EFE
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