Lee departs for Turkey to attend NATO summit

Lee Jae Myung departed on Tuesday for Turkey, the first leg of his two-nation trip, during which he will attend the NATO summit before heading to Mongolia.

The presidential aircraft carrying Lee took off from Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi, en route to Ankara, where the leaders of NATO’s 32 member countries, including U.S. President Donald Trump, will gather for the summit from Tuesday to Wednesday.

Lee will attend the summit at the invitation of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte. He will also hold a meeting with the NATO chief shortly after arriving in Ankara.

Lee will subsequently hold a meeting with representatives of Japan, Australia and New Zealand — the three countries that, together with Korea, make up NATO’s Indo-Pacific Four, according to the presidential office.

Later on Tuesday, he is scheduled to deliver a keynote speech at a defense industry forum on the sidelines of the NATO summit, joining a session titled “Shared Values, Stronger Industrial Base.”

On Wednesday, Lee is expected to hold a series of bilateral meetings with participating leaders as Korea seeks to expand its presence in the world’s biggest defense market.

This year’s NATO summit comes as member nations are moving to ramp up defense spending due to the growing global security instability, including the Russia-Ukraine war and the Middle East conflict.

From Thursday to Saturday, Lee will pay a state visit to Mongolia at the invitation of President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh, beginning with a summit with the Mongolian leader on the first day.

The two leaders plan to declare a “golden era of Korea-Mongolia relations” and outline a shared vision for the future of bilateral ties, according to the Blue House.

Also on Thursday, Lee will attend a Korea-Mongolia business forum to explore economic cooperation between the two countries.

On Saturday, he will attend the opening ceremony of this year’s Naadam Festival, Mongolia’s largest and most significant cultural celebration, as a special guest before heading home.

Lee’s scheduled visit to Mongolia will mark the first visit by a Korean president in 15 years.

Yonhap