By Rachel Lee
| President Park Geun-hye |
South Korea and Mexico have been working to expand their strategic partnerships across more diverse fields, and consequently, cultural ties have become stronger with the growing popularity of the Korean cultural wave, she said.
"The two nations will expand cooperation in a wider range of sectors on the basis of firm bilateral relations so that people both countries can receive real benefits," Park said during a meeting with about 200 South Korean residents in Mexico City.
Park arrived in Mexico earlier in the day on a four-day tour after the Nuclear Security Summit held in Washington, the United States. This is her first official visit to the Latin American country, accompanied by a business delegation of 145 representatives from 144 companies.
Building a stronger partnership will be discussed at Park's summit with her Mexican counterpart Enrique Pena Nieto, scheduled for Tuesday morning said Cheong Wa Dae said.
Park is expected to ask the Mexican government to allow South Korean companies to advance into the energy, transportation and public infrastructure sectors. The leaders will also discuss increasing bilateral cooperation in developing IT and science technologies.
During the meeting with Korean residents, Park wore a "hanbok," or traditional Korean dress, in red, green and white, the colors of the Mexican flag. About 12,000 Koreans currently reside in Mexico.
According to the Korea Foundation, the number of Korean pop fan clubs in Mexico reached 80 last year. Over 19,000 Mexicans attended a concert performed by South Korean band Big Bang, held at the Arena Ciudad de Mexico in Mexico City last October.
President Park also visited the National Museum of Anthropology and the Korea-Mexico cultural exchange festival.
North Korea's nuclear issues are also on the summit's agenda, Cheong Wa Dae said.
The two leaders are expected to discuss bilateral cooperation on the effective implementation of U.N. Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2270, which was imposed on March 2 in response to Pyongyang's latest nuclear test in January and subsequent long-range rocket launch in February.
Mexico, along with four other countries, condemned North Korea for its January nuclear test in a statement issued by MIKTA, a consultative forum of five middle-power countries ― Mexico, Indonesia, Korea, Turkey and Australia. Launched in September 2013, the forum aims to address the shared values and interests of member countries to convey these to the broader international community, such as through the U.N.
Mexico is South Korea's largest trading partner in Latin America, with their trading volume reaching $14.12 billion in 2014. Government data shows that some 1,600 South Korean companies, including leading conglomerates such as Samsung, LG and POSCO, operate in Mexico.