National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-Shik on Wednesday (local time) called for boosting bilateral ties in the energy and minerals sector as he met with Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and his parliamentary counterparts in Kazakhstan.Woo departed on a nine-day trip to Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan on Tuesday, in his first overseas trip as parliamentary leader since he took office in June.During his meeting with Tokayev, Woo voiced expectations for further bilateral cooperation, noting President Yoon Suk Yeol's new "South Korea-Central Asia K-Silk Road" initiative and the first Central Asia-Korea summit to be held in Seoul next year.Woo also urged Kazakhstan's support in the supply chain of key minerals and to ensure that South Korean companies are granted priority for development of lithium if the economic viability is confirmed during their exploration of lithium mines.During Yoon's trip to Astana in June, the two countries signed memorandums of agreement on critical minerals supply chain partnershi p, including one involving joint lithium mine exploration.Separately, Woo also met with his Kazakh counterpart, Yerlan Koshanov, and discussed cooperation in the nuclear and other energy sectors.Source: Yonhap News Agency
- May 14, 2026
