Jaishankar calls for closer cooperation with South Korea at Jeju Forum

Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar addresses the Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity 2026 in Jeju-si. | Photo credit: ANI

External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday (Jun 25, 2026) said India and South Korea “must work more closely together” in areas such as shipbuilding, health, infrastructure and defence.

The minister also called for “greater capacity and opportunities” for the global South to create new growth drivers, while stressing that the “interests of a few” nations are being “openly favored” – without naming any country. Mr Jaishankar is currently in South Korea on a two-day visit, the second leg of an ongoing foreign tour after visiting Mongolia.

Speaking at the Jeju Forum for Peace and Prosperity 2026, Mr. Jaishankar emphasized the importance of economic and technological partnership, political and strategic cooperation and closer people-to-people ties between New Delhi and Seoul.

“India and the Republic of Korea must work more closely together,” he said. “We have complementarities in areas such as shipbuilding, digital technology, healthcare, infrastructure or defense that are waiting to be exploited.” The minister went on to say that influential nations must create “new understandings and closer relationships” to stabilize the global order and solve problems and issues through agenda-specific cooperation.

He said: “The Global South should have more capacity and opportunities. This would also create new drivers of global growth.”

“As the interests of the few are openly favored, the costs to the many are less taken into account. This can only be countered by working together on multiple issues with multiple players. At the end of the day, we will see if multipolarity really delivers,” the foreign minister said.

Calling for stronger global cooperation, Mr Jaishankar said: “Whether it is pandemics like Covid-19, acts of terrorism or the impact of extreme climate events, these cannot be part of political jurisdictions. International cooperation is a must.” Mr Jaishankar also met former UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and former Mongolian Prime Minister Gombojav Zandanshatar on the sidelines of the Jeju Forum.

Earlier on Wednesday (June 24, 2026), Mr Jaishankar held talks with his South Korean counterpart Cho Hyun, focusing on bilateral cooperation and the rapidly changing global situation.

The talks focused on follow-up on key areas of trade, investment and finance that were agreed upon during South Korean President Lee Jae-myung’s state visit to India in April.

Published – 25 Jun 2026 14:49 IST