UNJournal Lee Sung Jun | Speaker Woo Won-Shik of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea met with Ambassador Khalid bin Ebrahim Al Hamar of the State of Qatar at the Speaker’s Office in Seoul on the morning of January 8 this year.

They discussed ways to expand economic cooperation between the two countries and resolve local challenges faced by Korean companies.

The most notable outcome of this meeting was the progress made in the long-pending Doha Metro dispute.
Last November, Speaker Woo became the first Republic of Korea National Assembly Speaker to make an official visit to Qatar, where he directly requested a resolution to the contract termination dispute between Samsung C&T and Qatar Railways.

Following Emir Tamim's promise to review the matter, the dispute, which had persisted for over a decade, entered a substantive phase of resolution, with approximately 240 billion won in outstanding receivables recently deposited in a Qatari court.

Chairman Woo expressed his special gratitude to Emir for the progress made toward a concrete solution.
Strengthening strategic cooperation in defense industry and AI and requesting Emir's visit to Korea
Since the two countries upgraded their relationship to a "Comprehensive Strategic Partnership" in October 2023, the scope of their cooperation has been expanding.

Defense Industry Cooperation: Chairman Woo noted Emir Tamim's strong interest in Korea's outstanding defense industry capabilities and expressed his hope for the swift implementation of concrete cooperation measures.

Expansion of Future Industries: Ambassador Al-Hamar responded that Chairman Woo's visit provided an important opportunity to explore specific possibilities for cooperation in strategic areas such as AI and the defense industry.

Official Invitation: Chairman Woo formally requested Emir Tamim's visit to Korea and the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea at an early date. Ambassador Al-Hamar emphasized, "The Qatari government will more actively support Korean private companies and explore new opportunities for cooperation through close communication." Present at the meeting were Fatma Al-Mir, Secretary for Political Affairs, from Qatar, and Park Tae-Seo, Senior Secretary for Public Relations, Ko Kyung-Seok, Ambassador-at-Large for Foreign Affairs, and Koo Hyun-woo, Director-General for International Affairs, from our side.