S. Korea. U.S. agree to cooperate in promoting green energy, tackling climate change

By Kang Yoon-seung

SEOUL, April 12 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States on Monday agreed to make joint efforts to fight climate change and harness more sustainable energy.

South Korea's Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo met his U.S. counterpart, Jennifer Granholm, virtually, and shared visions on fostering low-carbon and eco-friendly industries, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The two countries also agreed to expand ties for the Leaders Summit on Climate, which will be hosted by the U.S. later this month, in which 40 countries are expected to participate virtually.

Seoul asked Washington to support the upcoming online P4G summit that will be held in South Korea in May as well.

P4G stands for Partnering for Green Growth and the Global Goals 2030, a public-private initiative to tackle climate change and other sustainable development challenges.

Sung and Granholm, meanwhile, added the two should make efforts to further expand cooperation at a private level, citing the latest settlement of a legal dispute between two Korean battery makers.

On Sunday, SK Innovation agreed to pay 2 trillion won (US$1.78 billion) to settle the dispute with LG Energy Solution and withdraw all its other pending litigation to end their two-year legal battle.

U.S. President Joe Biden welcomed the settlement, calling the progress a "win for American workers and the American auto industry."

The deal paves the way for SK to complete the construction of the $2.6 billion electric vehicle battery plant in Georgia.

colin@yna.co.kr
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