Vice Minister for Trade and Energy Park Young June traveled to Latin America last week to strengthen Korea's ties with Mexico, Colombia, Venezuela and Peru. The Korean delegation included representatives of public organizations and private businesses. The 10-day trip was a chance to review the progress of many joint projects and to discuss additional areas for cooperation.

In Mexico, the first destination on the Vice Minister's itinerary, an energy meeting resulted in two memorandums of understanding-notably, one concerned rare metals. These are 35 elements in the periodic table. They are needed to manufacture products as diverse as wind turbines, car batteries and video cameras.

Vice Minister Park also met with Mexican General Coordinator of Mining Maria Jimena Valverde Valdes. The two Vice Ministers discussed mutually beneficial partnerships to make both sides more competitive in the global mineral market.

When Vice Minister Park met with his Mexican counterpart, Vice Minister of Energy Mario Gabriel Budebo, discussions focused on the development of oil and gas fields, nuclear energy, energy conservation, public infrastructure and alternative fuel technologies. In particular, Vice Minister Park proposed a training program for nuclear experts that will be tailored to suit Mexico's needs.