South Korea and Ecuador agreed Wednesday to strengthen bilateral ties especially in the fields of energy development and infrastructure construction, South Korea's presidential office said after a summit between their leaders.
President Lee Myung-bak and his Ecuadorean counterpart Rafael Correa had "an in-depth discussion on how to work together to make substantial progress in a wide range of areas, including trade and investment, IT, energy,
resources, infrastructure construction, development collaboration, the environment and bilateral cooperation in the international arena," according to Lee's office, Cheong Wa Dae.
Correa arrived in Seoul earlier in the day for a three-day stay. It marked the first trip here by an Ecuadorean president since 2002.
Lee called on Correa to "provide active support for South Korean corporations to participate particularly in building energy infrastructure, constructing oil-refinery facilities and developing energy and mineral
resources," it said in a press release.
Ecuador is one of the major oil producers in South America.
Correa, meanwhile, asked South Korea to expand development assistance for his country, Cheong Wa Dae said.
In response, Lee said his government plans to increase loans and grants for economic cooperation with Ecuador in the fields of solar and wind power generation.
After the summit, the two leaders attended the signing ceremony of two documents on bilateral cooperation -- on exporting South Korea's electronic customs clearance system and on boosting their partnerships in the environment and IT sector.
State-invested petroleum companies of the two nations also exchanged a letter of intent on mutual cooperation,.
During his stay, Correa is also scheduled to meet a group of South Korean business leaders and tour industrial facilities including SK's petroleum complex, Hyundai Heavy Industries and two state-funded research centers, the Korean Development Institute and the Korean Institute of Science and Technology.