Lee Jae-myung: South Korea and Brazil have risen to become strategic partnerships

South Korea and Brazil have announced that 2026 will be designated as the "first year of the development of the Korea-Brazil relationship into a strategic partnership".

According to the Yonhap News Agency, South Korean President Lee Myung-bak held talks with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva in Brasilia on Monday (July 27th), and after the meeting, both leaders jointly met with the press.

Lee Jae-myung stated that in the context of increasing uncertainty in the economic and trade environment, it is an urgent and important matter for South Korea to conclude a trade agreement with the Southern Common Market (Mercosur). Mercosur is a South American customs union consisting of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and it is the largest economic integration organization in South America.

Lee Jae-myung said that he firmly believes that the trade agreement between South Korea and Mercosur is expected to provide more opportunities for Korean enterprises to enter the local market, and also open up channels for Brazilian enterprises to enter the Asian market through South Korea. The leaders of the two countries agreed to establish a working group responsible for coordinating relevant consultations on economic and trade cooperation between the two countries in the future, and the policy director of the Blue House, Kim Yong-bum, and the vice president of Brazil, Alcim, will respectively represent their respective sides to coordinate the work.

Lee Jae-myung also stated that the two countries had initiated an industrial and economic high-level consultation mechanism - the "Economy and Trade Committee" - before the summit meeting. Going forward, this mechanism will be used to further deepen cooperation in areas such as trade, investment, military industry, aerospace, key minerals, and digital economy. The two countries have reached a consensus on establishing a joint military committee in the second half of this year, and will proceed to sign the "Agreement on the Protection and Exchange of Military and Defense Secrets".

Lee Jae-myung said that Brazil has been leading efforts for the nuclear-freeization of Central and South America and has consistently supported global nuclear-freeization and the peaceful resolution of international disputes. Lula and the Brazilian government firmly supported the efforts made by the South Korean government to achieve the nuclear-freeization and permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula during the talks. Lee Jae-myung expressed his gratitude for this.