President Lee Jae-myung departed on the 6th for a five-day visit to France at the invitation of President Emmanuel Macron. Lee will attend the Lumiere Summit, an international leaders' meeting on the film and video industry, as co-chair, and will discuss cooperation in advanced technologies including artificial intelligence, nuclear power and biotechnology at a summit with Macron. With the possibility of a South Korean troop deployment to the Strait of Hormuz under discussion, the two leaders may also take up the issue directly.
Lee left for Nice from Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, on the same day. His formal schedule begins on the 7th. He will first attend the inaugural Lumiere Summit in Saint-Paul-de-Vence as co-chair alongside Macron. National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac said in a briefing on the 4th that the government expects to "lead discussions on the future of the global film and video industry as a co-chairing nation alongside France, which has driven the birth and growth of the film industry, and to broaden the foundation for Korean content and Korean companies to enter the European market."
Lee will then spend two days in Paris from the 8th on a bilateral state visit. After a one-on-one luncheon with Macron at the Elysee Palace, the two leaders will hold expanded summit talks with delegations from both countries. The two sides plan to discuss cooperation as rivals in advanced technology that can also maximize complementary strengths in joint research and development and corporate partnerships.
Attention is focused on whether the talks will touch on the Strait of Hormuz. The government has said it is comprehensively reviewing options for a military contribution there. That has prompted expectations that Seoul could discuss specific measures with France, which has led international efforts to secure free passage through the strait. A senior presidential official said France "was the first country to move actively on international solidarity for passage through Hormuz, and it has been consulting with us," adding that "it cannot be ruled out" that the two leaders will take up the matter at the summit.
After the summit, Lee will attend a Korea-France business roundtable involving about 20 companies from the two countries. On the final day, the 9th, he will meet National Assembly Speaker Yael Braun-Pivet of the French lower house, hold a luncheon with members of the Korean community in France, and receive Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development Secretary-General Mathias Cormann.
