French President Emmanuel Macron and South Korean President Lee Jae-myung yesterday agreed to work together to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz and ease global economic uncertainties caused by the war in the Middle East.
Their summit in Seoul came as US President Donald Trump slammed allies for not supporting the US and Israeli war against Iran.
Macron, who was making his first visit to South Korea since taking office in 2017, told Lee that the two countries could play a role in helping to stabilize the situation in the Middle East, including Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.
Photo: AFP
At a joint televised briefing afterward, Macron underscored the need for France and South Korea to cooperate to help reopen the strait and de-escalate Middle East animosities, while Lee said the two affirmed “their resolves to cooperate to secure the safe shipping route in the Strait of Hormuz.”
The two leaders did not take questions and did not elaborate on how they would help reopen the strait.
“We need to clearly define, at the international level, the conditions for a process to ease the crisis and conflict in the Middle East,” Macron said. “We need to ensure that the Strait of Hormuz is reopened.”
Lee said he and Macron agreed to expand cooperation in technology, energy and other areas.
South Korean and French officials also signed agreements to cooperate on nuclear fuel supply chains, jointly invest in an offshore wind project in southern South Korea and collaborate on critical minerals.
Seoul has moved to increase output at its nuclear reactors to mitigate the energy crunch and Lee has also called for a faster transition to renewable energy, saying the war has exposed the country’s heavy reliance on fossil fuel imports.
South Korean officials have said they are in contact with Washington on the issue and that Seoul is not considering paying Iran transit fees to secure fuel shipments through the strait.
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