Kang Hoon-sik meets UAE's Khaldoon to review $65b cooperation agenda

Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik met with Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, chairman of the Abu Dhabi Executive Office, to review the progress of the two countries' $65 billion economic cooperation agenda.

The two sides discussed plans to expand joint investment and technology cooperation in advanced strategic industries — including AI, space and nuclear energy — alongside defense cooperation and strategic security partnership, and agreed to accelerate the concrete implementation of existing commitments.

Kang shared details of the meeting on X (formerly Twitter) on Saturday, writing that he had "met again on Friday with Khaldoon, who is like a brother to me."

"We spent the entire afternoon together, from lunch through a review meeting on Korea-UAE cooperation projects," he wrote. "We went through the progress of each cooperation project the two countries have committed to, one by one, and had an in-depth discussion on the challenges that still lie ahead."

Kang said that since President Lee Jae Myung visited the UAE last November as his first state visit after taking office, he and Khaldoon — the official dedicated to overseeing bilateral cooperation — had exchanged special envoy visits between the two countries. He said the exchanges helped open the door to the $65 billion economic cooperation initiative and translate commitments into concrete results through sector-specific working groups.

"The most important thing we examined was 'substantive implementation,'" he added. "We discussed how to carry out defense cooperation without a hitch, deepen the strategic security partnership, and expand joint investment and technology cooperation in advanced strategic industries such as AI, space and nuclear energy."

Kang also said that "just as a friend in need is a friend indeed, Korea and the UAE have held hands more firmly in moments of crisis."

"When the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz set off alarm bells for oil supply, the UAE was the first to reach out," he wrote, expressing gratitude. "The pledge of priority crude oil supply has been a great source of strength in protecting our economy and people's livelihoods."

"Working alongside Chairman Khaldoon, I am repeatedly reminded that the most powerful force driving the relationship between our two countries is, ultimately, deep trust," Kang said. "I will see it through to the end — turning the trust we upheld in difficult times into even greater achievements for the future, and ensuring that the '100-year partnership' between our two countries bears fruit that reaches the lives of our people."