South Korea and China agreed to widen cooperation across climate change, industry and technology after their leaders oversaw the signing of a series of agreements on 05 Monday 2025, according to the South Korean government.
The Brief of the MOU
South Korea’s Climate, Energy and Environment Ministry said it signed a new MOU with China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment, updating a 2014 environmental cooperation agreement for the first time in 12 years.
The updated framework expands collaboration beyond air-quality issues such as fine dust and yellow sand to include climate change response, circular economy policies, biodiversity conservation and carbon markets.
Separately, South Korea’s Industry Ministry signed an MOU with China’s Ministry of Commerce aimed at strengthening cooperation between industrial complexes, focusing on investment and supply chain stability.
On science and technology, South Korea’s Ministry of Science and ICT signed an agreement with China’s Ministry of Science and Technology to cooperate on global challenges, including climate change and sustainable development. Another agreement with China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology expands collaboration on digital technologies, including digital inclusion, with an ICT strategy dialogue scheduled in Beijing in 2026.
Why This Matters For Cross-Border Cooperation In Asia
The package reflects a bid to institutionalise cooperation in areas where friction has historically been high. South Korea and China have worked on environmental issues since the early 1990s - via a 1993 environmental cooperation agreement and initiatives such as the “Blue Sky” plan - but progress has been uneven, with recurring disputes over responsibility for fine dust and limited transparency in data sharing.
The updated framework attempts to move beyond episodic coordination by setting a fixed ministerial cadence, formal policy dialogues, and rolling action plans.
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