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Key Outcomes of the State Visit of the President of the Republic of Korea to India - Source -pmindia.gov.in
The State Visit of the President of the Republic of Korea marked a significant milestone in deepening the India–Republic of Korea (ROK) Special Strategic Partnership, with both nations reaffirming their commitment to a future-oriented, comprehensive, and resilient collaboration across sectors.
Strategic Vision and Joint Statements
Both sides adopted a series of forward-looking frameworks and joint statements aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation:
- Joint Strategic Vision for the India–ROK Special Strategic Partnership, outlining a shared roadmap for enhanced political, economic, and technological engagement.
- India–ROK Comprehensive Framework for Partnership in Shipbuilding, Shipping & Maritime Logistics, reinforcing maritime cooperation and supply chain resilience.
- Joint Statement on Cooperation in the Field of Sustainability, emphasizing green growth, climate action, and sustainable development.
- Joint Statement on Energy Resource Security, focusing on diversification, stability, and long-term energy collaboration.
MoUs and Institutional Frameworks
A wide-ranging set of Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) and frameworks were signed to operationalize cooperation across key sectors:
- MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Ports
- MoU on the Establishment of the Industrial Cooperation Committee
- MoU on Technology and Trade Cooperation for the Steel Supply Chain
- MoU on Cooperation in the Field of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs)
- MoU on Maritime Heritage Cooperation
- Joint Declaration on resuming negotiations to upgrade the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA)
- MoU between International Financial Services Centres Authority (IFSCA) and Financial Supervisory Service / Financial Services Commission (FSS/FSC) for mutual cooperation
- MoU between NPCI International Payments Limited and Korea Financial Telecommunications & Clearings Institute
- MoU on Cooperation in Science & Technology
- Framework for India–Korea Digital Bridge, aimed at strengthening digital and innovation ecosystems
- MoU on Climate and Environmental Cooperation
- MoU on Cooperative Approach under Article 6.2 of the Paris Agreement
- Cultural Exchange Programme (2026–2030)
- MoU on Cooperation in Cultural and Creative Industries
- MoU on Cooperation in Sports
Key Announcements and Initiatives
The visit also witnessed several important announcements to deepen engagement and institutional dialogue:
- Launch of an Economic Security Dialogue
- Establishment of a Distinguished Visitors Programme (DVP)
- Initiation of a Foreign Ministries Dialogue on Global Themes, including climate change, Arctic cooperation, and maritime issues
- The Republic of Korea’s participation in the Indo-Pacific Oceans Initiative
- Expansion of multilateral cooperation, with ROK joining the International Solar Alliance and India joining the Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI)
- Announcement to commemorate 2028–29 as the Year of India–ROK Friendship
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung landed in New Delhi with a purpose and strengthen the ties between India and South Korea. The major discussion points to revolve around - Defence co-production, Semiconductor supply chain, Space, Green hydrogen, Digital infrastructure and more.
This is what a modern state visit looks like when both sides have moved past the ceremonial phase of diplomacy and are talking seriously about what they can build together.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to hold high-level talks with President Lee today — the first full day of the three-day visit. The agenda, as outlined by the Ministry of External Affairs, covers defence and security cooperation, technology partnerships, trade, and people-to-people ties.
Why This Visit Now
South Korea and India have had a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) since 2010. Bilateral trade has grown steadily but never quite reached the potential that geographers and economists have been pointing to for years. In 2024-25, India-South Korea bilateral trade stood at approximately $23 billion — significant, but well below what the relationship's scale suggests is possible.
What has changed in 2025-26 is the context. Three things have shifted simultaneously.
First, the global semiconductor supply chain is being actively restructured. The U.S., Europe, Japan, and South Korea are all trying to reduce dependence on Chinese chip manufacturing. India — with its large engineering workforce, government incentives under the PLI scheme for semiconductors, and improving infrastructure — is being courted seriously. South Korea's Samsung and SK Hynix are two of the world's largest chip makers. A partnership with India on chip design, fabrication, and packaging is no longer speculative. It is actively being negotiated.
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Second, South Korea's defence industry has had a remarkable decade. The K2 Black Panther tank, the K9 Thunder self-propelled howitzer (which India has already purchased and licensed for domestic production), and the KF-21 fighter jet programme have positioned Seoul as a serious arms exporter — not just a U.S. ally but a manufacturer in its own right. India's defence modernisation programme, combined with its push for 'Make in India' in defence, creates natural room for deeper co-production.
Third, the geopolitical alignment between India and South Korea has become more explicit. Both countries are democracies with strong concerns about regional coercion — from China's assertiveness in their respective neighbourhoods and from North Korean instability. Neither articulates this publicly in confrontational terms. But the underlying strategic logic is not difficult to read.
Defence: The Centre of Gravity
The most consequential discussions during this visit are likely to happen on defence.
India has already operationalised one major Korea-India defence deal: the K9 Vajra self-propelled howitzer, manufactured by L&T in India under a transfer-of-technology agreement with Hanwha Defence. Over 100 units have been delivered to the Indian Army, with more in the pipeline. This is the template both sides want to replicate.
The areas under discussion for this visit include:
- Submarine technology: South Korea's DSME (now HD Hyundai Heavy Industries) has advanced conventional submarine capability. India is looking to expand its submarine fleet significantly, and discussions around a potential co-development programme are reportedly at an early but real stage.
- Naval shipbuilding: Beyond submarines, there is interest in anti-submarine warfare (ASW) corvettes and patrol vessels.
- Advanced artillery systems: Beyond K9, there are discussions around K21 infantry fighting vehicles and howitzer ammunition co-production.
- Air defence systems: South Korea's Cheongung (M-SAM) medium-altitude air defence system is under Indian evaluation as part of a broader air defence modernisation programme.
A joint statement on defence industrial cooperation is expected before the visit concludes. Whether it includes binding commitments or remains at the MoU level will determine its actual weight.
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Technology: The Semiconductor Conversation
On the technology side, the semiconductor discussion deserves particular attention.
India's Semiconductor Mission, launched in 2021 and now under the India Semiconductor Mission (ISM) node, has made progress but faces a reality check: chip fabrication is extraordinarily capital-intensive, and India still lacks the full ecosystem — including trained workforce, specialised chemicals supply chains, and ultra-pure water infrastructure — for advanced node manufacturing.
South Korea's strength is in the exact areas where India needs partnership. Samsung has already announced interest in India's chip incentive programme. The question is scale and timeline.
What is more immediately achievable is cooperation in chip design (India has strong talent here), testing and packaging (Assembly, Testing, Marking, and Packaging — ATMP — is an earlier step on the semiconductor value chain that India can reach sooner), and R&D collaboration between institutions like IITs and South Korean universities like KAIST.
A technology corridor between India's electronics clusters — Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune — and South Korea's technology hubs in Suwon, Incheon, and Daejeon is being discussed. This is not a symbolic gesture. If it materialises, it means structured exchange of engineers, joint IP development, and shared export pathways.
The Trade Gap and How to Close It
Current bilateral trade of $23 billion sounds impressive but is out of proportion with the size of the two economies. India's trade with ASEAN is over $120 billion. India's trade with the U.S. is over $190 billion. South Korea, an advanced OECD economy with per capita income nearly twenty times India's, should logically be a much bigger partner.
Part of the gap is structural: India and South Korea do not make many things the other one urgently needs at the moment. But part of it is a CEPA implementation problem. Indian industry has repeatedly flagged that the 2010 CEPA has led to a trade deficit — India imports more from South Korea than it exports — and that non-tariff barriers on the Korean side limit Indian exports in sectors like pharmaceuticals, agricultural products, and processed foods.
Renegotiation of the CEPA has been under discussion for several years. President Lee's visit is expected to give fresh impetus to these talks. Whether both sides can agree on a revised framework within a defined timeline is the operational question.
People-to-People and Cultural Ties
The Indian diaspora in South Korea is relatively small — approximately 12,000 to 15,000 people — but growing. More importantly, the reverse flow is significant: South Korean tourists and business travellers to India have increased steadily, and South Korean interest in Indian culture — particularly yoga and Ayurveda — has become commercially meaningful.
South Korea's popular culture (K-pop, K-drama) has a massive Indian fanbase, particularly among younger Indians. This creates a soft power bridge that both governments are aware of and can cultivate through cultural exchange programmes.
The two countries are also looking at expanding air connectivity. Direct flights between Seoul and Indian cities beyond Delhi and Mumbai — to Bengaluru, Chennai, and Hyderabad — are on the discussion table.
The Broader Strategic Frame
India and South Korea are both members of the Quad-adjacent strategic conversation in the Indo-Pacific, though Seoul is not a formal Quad member. Both countries have concerns about Chinese economic and military assertiveness. Both are U.S. allies or partners. Both are democracies navigating a world where the rules-based order is under strain.
This shared context creates a natural foundation for deeper partnership that goes beyond bilateral trade into third-country cooperation — joint infrastructure in Southeast Asia, for example, or coordination on critical mineral supply chains.
The Ministry of External Affairs described this visit as a "significant step" in the Special Strategic Partnership between India and South Korea. That designation — Special Strategic Partnership — was created in 2015. It has taken a decade to get to a visit of this depth and specificity.
Summing it Up
State visits can produce paper — MoUs, joint statements, frameworks. Or they can produce movement. The measure of President Lee's New Delhi visit will not be in the documents signed this week. It will be in whether K9 becomes the template for K21, whether Samsung breaks ground on an ATMP facility in India within the next two years, and whether the CEPA renegotiation gets a real deadline or another polite deferral.
Both sides know what they want. The question is whether their bureaucracies and industries can keep pace with the diplomatic intent.