The meeting will mark the only face-to-face summit with a foreign leader from Asia that will highlight the U.S. president’s focus on the region.
South Korean President Moon Jae-in will visit the White House on May 21 to talk with U.S. President Joe Biden to highlight the “iron alliance” between the two countries, the White House said Thursday.
“President Biden hopes to work with President Moon to further strengthen our alliance and expand our close cooperation,” the White House said in a statement.
The event will mark the second face-to-face summit with a foreign leader of the Biden presidency, which began in January.
Both meetings have been with Asian allies. The first, earlier this month, was with Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga.
Moon’s senior press secretary, Chung Man-ho, said in a televised conference that the two leaders would reaffirm the strength of their countries’ alliance and hope to expand comprehensive and reciprocal cooperation based on the friendship of the two nations. .
Moon and Biden’s decision to hold a summit in person despite “difficult” situations due to the COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates the importance of the Seoul-Washington alliance, according to Chung, the South Korean news agency Yonhap.
Moon had previously held several talks with Biden’s predecessor, Donald Trump, particularly on the issue of North Korea’s denuclearization.
Biden has identified China’s rise as the preeminent geopolitical challenge facing the United States and has been working to support allies in the region to counter what the United States considers market practices and human rights abuses in the United States. China.
“The meeting will also address close cooperation between South Korea and the United States to advance the full denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and a lasting peace policy, as well as practical cooperation, including the economy and trade, and the response to global challenges such as climate change and COVID-19, ”Chung said.
The Biden Democrat administration says it is in the final stages of its policy review to curb the nuclear program in North Korea.
North Korea has rejected unilateral disarmament and has given no indication that it is willing to go beyond statements of strong support for the concept of universal denuclearization.
