President Lee Jae-myung Meets with NATO Secretary General, Attends 'IP4' Small-Group Meeting

President Lee Jae-myung, who is visiting Türkiye to attend the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit, held a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
On the afternoon of July 7 (local time), President Lee met with Secretary General Rutte in Ankara and expressed his pleasure, saying, "We have only spoken over the phone, so this is the first time we are meeting in person."
Secretary General Rutte responded by saying, "You look exactly like your photos," and added, "Thank you very much for attending the summit. I appreciate your special efforts to ensure that the relationship between Korea and NATO continues to develop strongly."
President Lee then joined Secretary General Rutte and the representatives of the IP4 (Indo-Pacific Partner) nations—Japan, Australia, and New Zealand—for a small-group meeting.
This meeting serves as a high-level platform for cooperation between NATO and its Indo-Pacific partners and has been held since the Hague summit last year to reflect the commitment of both sides to strengthening security cooperation.
From the Korean side, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Hyun, Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-baek, Director of the National Security Office Wi Sung-lac, and Ambassador to NATO Yoo Jeong-hyun attended. From Japan, Minister of Defense Koizumi Shinjiro, Minister for Foreign Affairs Motegi Toshimitsu, Director General of the Defense Policy Bureau Manami Manabu, and Director General of the European Affairs Bureau Kitagawa Katsuro were present.
The Australian delegation included Minister for Defence Industry Pat Conroy, Ambassador to NATO Angus Campbell, Chief of Staff to the Minister for Defence Industry Nigel Bruce, and Assistant Secretary of the Department of Defence Robert Tugen, while Minister of Defence Chris Penk attended from New Zealand.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.