Bilateral meetings held on sidelines of Korea-Africa Foreign Ministers' Meeting

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun delivers opening remarks at the 2026 Korea-Africa Business Forum at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun delivers opening remarks at the 2026 Korea-Africa Business Forum at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

Foreign Minister Cho Hyun held bilateral talks with the foreign ministers of 11 African countries attending the Korea-Africa Foreign Ministers' Meeting to discuss practical cooperation, South Korea's Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Tuesday.

On Monday, Cho met separately with the foreign ministers of Ghana, Somalia, Tanzania, Tunisia, Kenya, Angola, Rwanda, Benin, Algeria, Sao Tome and Principe, and Botswana, exchanging views on bilateral relations and regional affairs.

Cho welcomed the African ministers to Seoul for the meeting. The African ministers congratulated South Korea on successfully hosting the gathering and praised the government's commitment to Africa cooperation for proceeding with the meeting as scheduled despite difficult circumstances, the ministry said.

In his meeting with Ghanaian Foreign Minister Abdisalam Abdi Ali, the two ministers agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation in development cooperation, maritime security and the protection of overseas nationals.

In talks with Tanzanian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Thabit Kombo, Kombo said he hoped South Korean companies would expand their investment and business presence in Tanzania going forward.

Meeting with Tunisian Foreign Minister Mohamed Ali Nafti, Cho noted that the two countries have deepened cooperation across a wide range of fields since establishing diplomatic ties in 1969 — including health, the economy, defense and the defense industry, development cooperation, and international organization elections.

In his meeting with Kenyan Foreign Minister Wycliffe Musalia Mudavadi, Cho said he hoped that successful Korea-Kenya development cooperation initiatives — such as the recently opened Kenya Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (Kenya-AIST) — would not only drive Kenya's growth but also be replicated in other regions.

Cho was also scheduled to host a breakfast meeting Tuesday with representatives of three international organizations attending the Korea-Africa Foreign Ministers' Meeting — the African Union, Africa CDC and the African Development Bank — and to hold separate meetings with the foreign ministers of Nigeria, Malawi, Gambia, the Republic of Congo, Togo, South Sudan and Egypt, the ministry said.


moone@heraldcorp.com