Samoa and the Republic of Korea this week commemorated 50 years of diplomatic relations and in doing so, hosted a reception to mark years of collaboration between the two countries since the establishment of diplomatic relations on 15 September 1972.
The Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Peseta Noumea Simi said the bilateral relations have been cordial and underpinned by mutual respect over the years.
“Our friendly relations are guided by the purposes and principles of the United Nations Charter which are; respect for sovereignty, equality, maintaining of international peace and security, and respect for human rights to name a few.
“Samoa and the Republic of Korea have collaborated on mutual endeavors to obtain development and opportunities for progress and Samoa will continue to commit to maintaining and strengthening our existing relations through continued cooperation.”
Peseta said the Republic of Korea has supported various development projects for Samoa mainly in the fields of health, agriculture and environment and that Samoa continues to benefit from short-term training opportunities funded by the Korean International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) in the areas of information technology, tourism, trade,
environment, port management, fisheries as well as the protection of intellectual property.
These short-term training opportunities assist in upskilling and building capacity and are very much welcomed by Samoa.
Samoa and Korea have an existing Agreement on the Exchange of Information relating to Tax Matters since 2016, promoting collaboration through the ease of exchange of information when needed specifically in the area relating to tax matters.
