, Korea and Ukraine signed an agreement for cooperation in the aerospace field, paving the way for the development of commercial and military satellite technology, Cheong Wa Dae announced on Monday (Dec. 18).
Officials from the two countries signed the pact after a summit between President Roh Moo-hyun and Ukrainian President Victor Yushchenko who agreed to promote bilateral relations in various fields, including the defense industry and trade.
It is the second time that Korea has signed an agreement on aerospace engineering with a foreign country since it concluded a similar pact with Russia in September 2004, according to the Ministry of Science and Technology.
Under the aerospace accord, Korea and Ukraine will set up a joint committee to discuss concrete cooperation programs. The two countries have already been cooperating closely in science and technology since they signed a pact in 1992.
A former members of the defunct Soviet Union, the Ukraine emerged as an aerospace powerhouse after it separated itself from the Soviets in 1991. It is said to have accounted for about 30 percent of the former Soviet Union's aerospace technology.
In the one-hour summit, Roh and Yushchenko also discussed ways to promote relations between the two nations and how best to approach international security problems, such as North Korea's nuclear program, South Korean officials said.
Roh also asked for the Ukrainian government's support for 36,000 ethnic Koreans living in the Central Asian country.
Yushchenko, who arrived in Seoul earlier in the day, will meet with local business leaders during his two-day state visit.
It is the second time that a Ukrainian president has visited Seoul since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 1992.
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