S Korean President to visit India on July 8

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will pay a state visit to India from July 8 to 11, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.

Addressing a press briefing, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said, "This will be the South Korean President's first visit to India. He will arrive on the evening of July 8 and will be accompanied by First Lady Kim Jung-sook, senior members of his cabinet, officials and industrialists."

He added that President Moon will meet External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu during his visit.

The South Korean President will also attend the India-Korea business forum, after which he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit the Gandhi Smriti.

The two leaders will also visit a Samsung plant in Noida.

"President Moon's working day will start on July 10. He will be accorded a ceremonial reception, after which there will be official high-level talks between him and Prime Minister Modi at Hyderabad House. Some agreements are expected to be signed during the visit," Raveesh continued.

The MEA spokesperson stated that the two leaders will address the India-Korea CEOs roundtable. President Moon will then meet with his Indian counterpart Ram Nath Kovind, where the latter will host a state banquet.

Speaking on the bilateral relations, Raveesh said, "The partnership has elevated to special strategic partnership and the relations have expanded in several areas. The relations with the Republic of Korea (ROK) is a logical extension of Act East strategy. The ROK has a new southern strategy. We expect the visit to open a new avenue for expansion of partnership, particularly in the economic domain."

He further added that bilateral trade surpassed the USD 20 billion mark and investments between the two countries are rising.