OUR DRIVE-Senior diplomats from South Korea and Australia held talks on Thursday and agreed to increase cooperation to ensure a stable supply of diesel and other energy resources.
This step comes amid global supply disruptions caused by the ongoing crisis in the Middle East.
South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong adopted a joint statement during their meeting in Seoul.
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The statement includes points regarding high-level exchanges, economic security, defense cooperation and regional security issues.
“The ROK and Australia share concerns about the situation in the Middle East and its consequences for our region, including the impact on energy, resources and other critical commodities,” the two government delegations said in the joint statement.
ROK is an acronym for South Korea’s official name, the Republic of Korea.
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The two sides reaffirmed their commitment “to work together to strengthen energy resource security, including efforts to maintain a stable, safe, and reliable supply of diesel fuel and other liquid fuels, as well as energy resource commodities, including liquefied natural gas (LNG) and condensate.”
In addition, they pledged to “inform and consult each other regarding potential disruptions to the extent possible,” the statement said.
The two countries also committed to deepening regional cooperation, accelerating the energy transition, addressing unwarranted import and export restrictions, and supporting open trade arrangements for energy resources and liquid fuels to strengthen the resilience of energy supply chains.
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Australia is known to be South Korea’s largest LNG supplier and one of the main suppliers of condensate and important minerals.
In contrast, South Korea is one of Australia’s main suppliers of diesel as well as a major supplier of refined petroleum products.
The conflict in the Middle East, which began in late February following the US-Israel attack on Iran, has escalated into a wider war.
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This disrupted global supply chains and shook markets because the Strait of Hormuz, the region’s main energy logistics route, was effectively closed.
South Korea itself relies heavily on foreign supplies to meet its energy needs, even though the country is a major exporter of refined petroleum products.
During the talks, Cho and Wong also discussed ways to expand cooperation in the defense industry.
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This effort capitalizes on the momentum from the establishment of Australia’s first overseas manufacturing center by a South Korean defense company.
Hanwha Aerospace Co. It has been operating a major manufacturing facility in Geelong, Australia, since 2024 to produce the K9 self-propelled howitzer and the K10 armored ammunition carrier.***
