President Moon Jae-in and President of Poland Andrzej Duda held a summit at Cheong Wa Dae for 45 minutes from four o’clock this afternoon. The Polish President is visiting Korea to attend the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics. They discussed how to deepen substantive bilateral cooperation and work together on North Korea policy.

President Moon began by congratulating President Duda on the centennial this year of Poland’s independence. He expressed satisfaction that Korea and Poland, a key partner for diplomatic diversification and, at the same time, a strategic partner, had worked closely together in a variety of areas, including politics, the economy and culture.

President Moon said that many Korean businesses were already operating in Poland, a bridgehead and hub for an advance into the European market, expressing the hope that an increasing number of Korean firms would expand into the country. The President gave a high evaluation of the two nations` brisk cooperation centered around future industries such as the batteries for electric vehicles and the defense industry. He also expressed the hope that the two countries would further enhance substantive cooperation in infrastructure and energy in the days to come. 

In response, President Duda said that Korean businesses operating in Poland were already of significant help to the economy of his country. Putting an emphasis on the strategic partnership between the two nations, the Polish President proposed that Korea and Poland strengthen cooperation in various areas, including politics and the economy.    

President Moon expressed his gratitude to Poland, which has contributed to the peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula as a member of the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission, for strongly supporting the South Korean Government’s North Korea policy, including through the issuance of a statement welcoming the resumption of inter-Korean talks. The President asked for continued support from Poland so that the atmosphere for dialogue and reconciliation between the two Koreas would be carried on even after the close of the PyeongChang Olympics and develop into a dialogue for the peaceful resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue. 

Polish President Duda said peace should be the first priority as nothing is more important than human life, adding that Poland, currently a non-permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, would assist in achieving peace on the Korean Peninsula. The Polish President asked President Moon to visit Poland next year marking the 30th anniversary of Korea-Poland diplomatic relations.