1. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Kang Insun attended the Minerals Security Partnership (MSP) Principals’ Meeting in Toronto, Canada, on March 3 and discussed with representatives from the other 14 partners, including the G7, ways to diversify the global supply chain of critical minerals, such as lithium, graphite, nickel and rare earth materials. Included in the Korean delegation to the Meeting were Resources Industry Policy Director General at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) Ryu Peob Min and Executive Vice President of Korea Mine Rehabilitation and Mineral Resources Corporation Kwon Soon Jin.

2. In the Meeting, the MSP partners agreed to establish the MSP Forum and seek effective cooperation on critical minerals among MSP Forum members. Accordingly, it is expected that not only the MSP partner states but also other countries with critical mineral reserves will take part in MSP cooperation through the Forum, contributing to building sustainable global supply chains for critical minerals. In a related light, the MSP partners welcomed Estonia’s accession to the MSP.

3. The MSP partners agreed to boost the policy support for the 23 MSP projects in efforts to promote clean energy transition and diversification of global supply chains.

4. Latin American countries with resource reserves joined the MSP partners in the Meeting and exchanged views on ways for cooperation in mineral development.

5. Vice Minister Kang visited the venue of the Prospectors and Developers Association of Canada (PDAC) Annual Convention 2024, held in conjunction with the MSP Principals’ Meeting, to listen about private business operation in the critical minerals area and exchange views on private-public cooperation.

6. On the sidelines of the MSP Principals’ Meeting, Vice Minister Kang will host an MSP Graphite Supply Chain Deep-Dive Meeting in Toronto on March 4, bringing together MSP government officials, mineral experts, businesses participating in key global graphite projects, and representatives from relevant companies of MSP partner countries. The Meeting will cover ways to strengthen the global supply chains for graphite, a key critical mineral for batteries.

7. Director General of MOTIE Ryu will have bilateral meetings with Director-General of the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Yuki Sadamichu, Director General of Natural Resources Canada Deborah Yu, and CEO of Invest in Canada Laura Broten in Toronto on March 4 and seek enhanced bilateral cooperation on critical minerals.