Geun-hye is the first South Korean president who visits Iran, heading a large business delegation of over 230 executives during the three-day visit.
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Still, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani voiced his country’s opposition to nuclear development on the Korean Peninsula in a news conference on Monday after his summit with Park in Tehran, in an apparent reference to North Korea’s ongoing nuke program.
Vahid Salemi/AP South Korean President Park Geun-hye, left, listens to Iranian Industry Minister Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh.
“The security of the Korean peninsula and security of the Middle East are very important to us”, Mr Rouhani said.
Exploitation of oil as well as investment in petrochemicals are two other areas the two countries can expand their collaborations in, Zanganeh said.
North Korea was handed tougher United Nations sanctions for its fourth nuclear test and a long-range rocket launch earlier this year.
South Korea’s military estimated the DPRK had already completed preparations for its fifth nuclear test at a nuclear test site where the country carried out all of its four nuclear tests.
“The two sides made a decision to increase by three times the current trade volume of around $6 billion to $18 billion”, Mr Rouhani said in a joint televised press conference. Just hours after her summit talks with Rouhani, President Park sat down with Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the country’s highest figure in religion and politics.
LNG exports, gas market cooperation and transfer of experience in the field of gas trade were the main topics of the letter of understanding signed between the National Iranian Gas Exports Company and South Korea’s Kogas. Iran has announced about US$27 billion worth of projects to build and modernize its infrastructure, including railways and airports.
“Toward supporting relations with the Islamic Republic of Iran, South Korea will provide $25 billion in finance for infrastructure projects in Iran”.
He said he supports changes on the Korean peninsula, as Iran is against any type of nuclear development, and vowed to cooperate in implementing sanctions on Pyongyang.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that Iran will never violate its commitments under the nuclear deal signed with the six world powers past year.
North Korea and Iran established diplomatic ties in 1973, and relations blossomed in the 1980s.
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Iran, whose exports to South Korea were less than 100,000 barrels a day before sanctions were lifted, has since worked to quickly boost its output.
