Egypt and South Korea Launch First Strategic Dialogue in Seoul

Badr Abdel Aty, Egypt’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, met with South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin during his visit to Seoul. The two ministers held the inaugural session of the strategic dialogue between their countries.

According to Tamim Khalaf, spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Minister Abdel Aty emphasized the significance of this first round as a pivotal moment in Egyptian-South Korean relations. He highlighted the importance of building on the outcomes from the visit of South Korea’s President to Egypt in November 2025 and expressed hopes for increased high-level bilateral visits that would elevate their partnership.

Minister Abdel Aty also expressed a desire to enhance economic and investment cooperation with South Korea. He stressed the need for intensified mutual investment visits and underscored the importance of activating the joint Egyptian-Korean Business Council to deepen business ties between both nations. Additionally, he proposed organizing an annual Egyptian-Korean economic forum aimed at fostering partnerships within their business communities.

The spokesperson noted that Minister Abdel Aty reviewed positive developments within Egypt’s economy resulting from structural reforms implemented over recent years, which have improved the business climate and enhanced market attractiveness for foreign investments.

He pointed out Egypt’s competitive advantages as a gateway to African markets under the African Continental Free Trade Agreement, along with promising investment opportunities available in the Suez Canal Economic Zone.

The minister mentioned various incentives provided by the Egyptian government for investors, including streamlined investment procedures and industrial land availability. He welcomed expanding existing Korean investments while attracting new ones in priority sectors.

Moreover, Minister Abdel Aty expressed appreciation for South Korea’s choice of Egypt as a strategic partner for developmental cooperation. He looked forward to discussing new projects under South Korea’s official development assistance framework, particularly in education, science and technology, and human resource development—aiming to meet mutual interests by providing trained labor for Korean factories operating in Egypt as well as addressing some needs within the Korean labor market.

The discussion also included opportunities for trilateral cooperation among Egypt, South Korea, and African nations—especially regarding infrastructure development and renewable energy—highlighting Egypt’s role as a key gateway into Africa.

He referred to a memorandum signed between Egypt’s Agency for Partnership Development and South Korea’s International Cooperation Agency during the 2024 Korea-Africa Summit as a promising framework for boosting collaboration across Africa.

Additionally, Minister Abdel Aty outlined preparations underway for hosting Egypt’s first “Alamein – Africa” Business Forum later this month. He affirmed that this forum would serve as an important platform to enhance trade and investment partnerships across Africa while inviting his Korean counterpart to actively participate and leverage promising investment opportunities available within African markets.

The two ministers also addressed rapidly evolving regional and international developments. Minister Abdel Aty reviewed Egypt’s stance on American-Iranian negotiations alongside issues concerning Gaza, Sudan, Lebanon, water security concerns in Egypt, conditions in the Horn of Africa, and Red Sea dynamics—emphasizing that water security is an existential issue for Egypt.

In response, Minister Park praised the depth of “Egyptian-Korean” relations expressing his eagerness to elevate bilateral ties across all sectors while commending Egypt’s pivotal role in promoting security and stability throughout the Middle East.