MOU for Defence Industry Co-Operation in Shipbuilding between India and Republic of Korea

• India and the Republic of Korea (RoK) have signed an Inter-governmental Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for Defence Industry Co-operation in Shipbuilding.
• Main points of the MoU are as follows: 
• Develop and strengthen defence industry co-operation between Republic of India and the Republic of Korea.
• The two sides will recommend the organisations for collaborating in the implementation of specific projects.
• The organisations recommended for co-operative projects may conclude separate agreements (contracts) between them to implement the specific projects.

Analysis:

• Both countries only established consular relations in 1962, in spite of the long association between their peoples.
• Relations have improved by leaps and bounds in the aftermath of the end of the Cold War. During the Cold War era, India and South Korea were aloof from each other as South Korea was a strong ally of the United States, while India had inched closer to the erstwhile Soviet Union, though still not an ally.
• India’s improving relations with the United States have also contributed to better relations with South Korea in the post-Cold war era. In addition, the liberalization of the Indian economy and the launch of India’s “Look-East Policy” (now renamed as the “Act East Policy”) were also major drivers of the improving ties between the two nations. South Korean companies have made brisk business in India. As the Indian economy grows, more and more people are being elevated to the middle-class, thereby creating a huge market for Korean companies.
• In order to improve people-to-people ties, India has announced a visa-on-arrival facility for tourists from South Korea. Buddhism spread to Korea from the land of its birth, India, and many Korean tourists visit places in India like Bodh Gaya, associated with Buddhism.
• A bilateral Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) was signed between the two sides in August 2009.
• There are immense prospects for the India-South Korea bilateral relationship. In addition, there are many avenues for cooperation between India and South Korea in multilateral forums like the East Asia Summit (EAS), the AIIB (Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank), besides in organizations like the G-20.
   

By: Vishal