President Lee Jae Myung shakes hands with Mongolian National Assembly Speaker Saindag Byambatsogt at a hotel in Ulaanbaatar ahead of their meeting on Friday (local time). [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae Myung shakes hands with Mongolian National Assembly Speaker Saindag Byambatsogt at a hotel in Ulaanbaatar ahead of their meeting on Friday (local time). [Yonhap]

Lee proposes 'Defense Industry Partnership 2.0' at NATO; discusses warship cooperation with Trump

First summit with Zelensky covers North Korean POWs, Ukraine support

Korea-Mongolia 'Golden Era' declaration sets $1B trade target, critical minerals cooperation

President Lee Jae Myung returns home Saturday after completing a five-day diplomatic tour that took him to the NATO summit in Ankara and a state visit to Mongolia. The trip focused on defense industry and shipbuilding sales to NATO member states, diplomacy surrounding the war in Ukraine, and expanding trade and critical minerals cooperation with Mongolia.

On Friday, Lee attended the opening ceremony of the Naadam Festival — Mongolia's largest national celebration — as an official guest of honor alongside Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh in Ulaanbaatar. It was the first time a South Korean president had been invited as guest of honor at the Naadam Festival, which commemorates Mongolia's freedom and independence.

Lee and first lady Kim Hye-kyung visited an archery venue and a shagai — a traditional Mongolian game — competition site before attending a farewell luncheon hosted by Khurelsukh. Lee then concluded his three-day state visit to Mongolia and departed for home.

The tour began with the NATO summit, held over two days starting Tuesday in Ankara, Turkey. Lee met with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and took part in a small-group session attended by leaders and senior officials from the four Indo-Pacific partner countries: South Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand.

At the NATO Defense Industry Forum, Lee proposed a "Korea-NATO Defense Industry Partnership 2.0" that would broaden cooperation to cover joint research, production and operations. The proposal goes beyond the existing model of finished-product exports to encompass co-development of weapons systems, supply chain construction and stronger interoperability with NATO member states.

Lee said that as AI, drones and robots see growing military application, stable production capacity and supply chains determine a nation's security capabilities. He also said South Korea would work to expand the institutional framework allowing Korean defense companies to participate in NATO's joint research and procurement programs covering ammunition, space and drones.

President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump speak at an official welcome dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife at the presidential palace in Ankara, Turkey, on Tuesday (local time). [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae Myung and US President Donald Trump speak at an official welcome dinner hosted by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife at the presidential palace in Ankara, Turkey, on Tuesday (local time). [Yonhap]

At the official welcome dinner, Lee met with US President Donald Trump and discussed shipbuilding cooperation. When Trump asked whether South Korea could assist in building US Navy vessels, Lee outlined the shipbuilding capabilities of South Korean companies and said he intended to cooperate to the fullest extent possible, according to officials.

The two leaders agreed to have working-level officials examine specific cooperation plans for warship construction, maintenance, repair and overhaul. The exchange confirmed at the presidential level the possibility of South Korean shipbuilders participating in the US Navy's fleet rebuilding effort.

Lee also held a series of bilateral talks with leaders of countries interested in acquiring South Korean defense equipment, including Norway and Romania. The meetings aimed to expand K-defense exports — which have grown largely through Poland — across Northern and Eastern Europe, and to explore prospects for follow-on contracts and local production partnerships.

President Lee Jae Myung and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shake hands ahead of their summit at a hotel in Ankara, Turkey, on Wednesday (local time). [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae Myung and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky shake hands ahead of their summit at a hotel in Ankara, Turkey, on Wednesday (local time). [Yonhap]

Lee held his first summit with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky since taking office. The two leaders discussed South Korea's support for Ukraine, postwar reconstruction cooperation and the issue of North Korean soldiers captured on the Ukrainian battlefield.

On the question of North Korean prisoners of war, the two sides agreed that the matter should be handled in accordance with international law and humanitarian principles, respecting the free will of those involved. They also shared the view that deepening military cooperation between North Korea and Russia poses a simultaneous threat to security on the Korean Peninsula and in Europe.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, whose country holds the NATO summit chairmanship, presented Lee with a Turkish-made revolver and six rounds of live ammunition as a gift. The South Korean government said it would coordinate with the Korean National Police Agency to obtain approval for bringing the firearm into the country, after which it would be transferred to the Presidential Archives under the management of the Presidential Security Service.

Lee traveled to Mongolia on Wednesday and held a summit with Khurelsukh, at which the two sides adopted a joint declaration titled "The Golden Era of Korea-Mongolia Relations" laying out a future vision for bilateral ties. It was the first state visit to Mongolia by a South Korean president in 15 years.

The two leaders announced an agreement in principle on a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and pledged to expand bilateral trade to $1 billion by 2030. Once the CEPA takes effect, economic cooperation between the two countries is expected to broaden beyond tariff reductions to cover services, investment and supply chains.

Development of Mongolia's critical minerals — including rare earth elements and copper — and the building of related supply chains were also central agenda items. The cooperation reflects a convergence of interests: Mongolia is resource-rich but relatively lacking in manufacturing and processing capacity, while South Korea seeks to secure supply chains for advanced industries such as batteries and semiconductors.

The two countries also agreed to expand cooperation in transportation and logistics, agriculture, finance, healthcare, science and technology, and responses to yellow dust. The joint declaration also included a plan to increase annual people-to-people exchanges to 500,000 by 2030, the year marking the 40th anniversary of diplomatic ties.

During the state visit, Lee attended a Korea-Mongolia business forum and met in succession with Mongolian Prime Minister Nyamosuren Ochiral and National Assembly Speaker Dashzegve Amarbayasgalang, along with other government and parliamentary leaders. He also visited a memorial hall dedicated to Yi Tae-jun, a Korean independence activist who carried out medical work and supported the independence movement in Mongolia.

Mongolia maintains traditional diplomatic ties with North Korea while also holding a strategic partnership with South Korea. At the summit, Lee asked Mongolia to play a role in easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula and resuming inter-Korean dialogue, and the two sides agreed to continue cooperating on confidence-building measures in the region.


hong@heraldcorp.com