President Lee Jae-myung will hold a summit this evening (October 29) with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who is paying an official visit to South Korea.

Starting around 5 p.m. today at the Blue House, President Lee and Chancellor Merz are scheduled to hold a summit, followed by a joint press announcement and an official dinner.

During the meeting, the two leaders are expected to cover a wide range of agendas, including industrial cooperation in manufacturing and other fields, economic cooperation, collaboration on future industries such as batteries, semiconductors, and artificial intelligence (AI), cooperation in defense and the arms industry, expanding people-to-people exchanges, as well as regional and international issues.

President Lee previously posted about the upcoming meeting on his social media, writing, "South Korea and Germany are precious partners that have cooperated across various fields, including the economy, industry, and science and technology, based on long-standing friendship and trust." He added, "I hope this visit serves as an opportunity to further deepen the friendship and cooperation between our two countries and jointly open a path toward shared prosperity and a better future."

This summit between President Lee and Chancellor Merz comes about four months after the G7 Summit held in Évian, France, in June this year, and marks their third meeting since Chancellor Merz took office.

Chancellor Merz is visiting South Korea for two days to attend the 19th German Asia-Pacific Business Conference held in Seoul.

(Photo: Yonhap News)