Summit with President Sheinbaum set for Thursday
President Lee Jae Myung has arrived in Mexico City for a state visit — the first by a South Korean president in 16 years.
Air Force One, carrying Lee and first lady Kim Hye-kyung, landed at Felipe Angeles International Airport on Wednesday evening (local time).
After a day of rest, Lee is scheduled to hold a summit with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum Pardo on Thursday.
The two leaders are expected to hold in-depth discussions on expanding bilateral trade and investment and on institutional support measures to strengthen the foothold of South Korean companies operating in Mexico.
The two sides also plan to actively discuss cooperation on energy and mineral supply chains, given Mexico's abundant natural resources including crude oil.
On Friday, Lee will attend a business forum at the Mexico City World Trade Center and visit a K-Expo event.
The visit aims to solidify the foundation for Korean cultural content and South Korean companies to expand into Latin America, with Mexico serving as the region's largest K-pop market and its top importer of South Korean goods.
Cheong Wa Dae said the trip would give strong momentum to broadening the horizons of cultural diplomacy by positioning Mexico — a core consumer market for Korean content — as a strategic platform for South Korean expansion into Latin America.
Lee is set to leave Mexico City on Saturday morning and head home.
Mexico is a massive market of about 130 million people with a GDP of $1.8 trillion, and serves as a key gateway to the North American market.
Mexico is South Korea's top trading and investment partner in Latin America, with roughly 560 South Korean companies actively operating there.
National Security Director Wi Sung-lac said at an earlier briefing that the summit would include "in-depth discussions on expanding bilateral trade and investment and on institutional support measures to firmly back Korean companies' entry into Mexico and their activities there," adding that the two sides would "actively discuss cooperation on energy and mineral supply chains with Mexico, which holds abundant natural resources such as crude oil."
Wi went on to say that the government would "prepare substantively so that this state visit opens a new chapter in the strategic partnership established between the two countries in 2005 and sets a firm milestone toward shared prosperity."
sang@heraldcorp.com
