Speaker of the Assembly of People's Representatives (ARP), Brahim Bouderbala, received on Thursday at the Bardo Palace Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, Kim Jin-pyo, who is visiting Tunisia from January 17 to 19 at the head of a parliamentary delegation. Bouderbala praised the excellent relations that unite the two friendly countries and said that this visit will be a springboard for establishing more diverse and richer cooperation in various fields. The Speaker of the Parliament expressed Tunisia's desire to further strengthen its economic relations with the Republic of Korea and to create appropriate conditions to encourage investors to launch projects and establish promising partnerships in many sectors, especially those related to scientific, technological, academic and cultural research. In the same context, Bourderbala stressed the importance of increasing exchanges between businessmen from the two countries and promoting Tunisia as a tourist destination. He stressed the AR P's keenness to strengthen parliamentary cooperation with the Republic of Korea through the formation of a parliamentary friendship group and to intensify the exchange of visits in a way that contributes to enriching bilateral relations at various levels to serve common interests. He also stressed the parliament's willingness to contribute to the development of Tunisian-Korean cooperation and to overcome the difficulties and facilitate the working conditions of Korean companies in Tunisia by providing the appropriate legal framework and speeding up the ratification of bilateral cooperation agreements in various fields. For his part, the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea expressed his gratitude for the warm welcome accorded to him and his accompanying delegation, which he said "reflects the strength and excellence of the relations between the two countries". He underlined the common desire to continue fruitful bilateral cooperation in the economic, cultural and technological fields. K im Jin-pyo emphasised the importance of parliamentary relations and their contribution to the development of friendship and cooperation, and expressed the hope that this visit would open up new prospects for relations between the two countries and contribute to the achievement of all desired goals. The Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea expressed his interest in the steps taken by Tunisia in its transition process and the continuation of political, economic and social reforms. The Korean official underlined his country's willingness to welcome Tunisian students through scholarships, the establishment of cooperation programmes in this field and the introduction of Korean culture through language training, given the openness of some Tunisian youth to this culture. He also stressed his country's willingness to strengthen cooperation with Tunisia in the field of tourism, pointing out that many Korean companies based in Tunisia are working to promote Tunisia as a tourist destination throu gh spots, given its rich cultural heritage. He pointed to Tunisia's strategic location in Africa and the Mediterranean and its relations with European countries, saying these are "positive factors for strengthening trilateral cooperation between Tunisia, Korea and Africa". He said that the Republic of Korea shares with Tunisia its belief in the issues of law, justice and world peace, noting that his country will make more efforts to achieve peace in the Middle East. The Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea arrived in Tunis on Wednesday evening and was welcomed by Brahim Bouderbala at Tunis Carthage International Airport. Source: Agence Tunis Afrique Presse