Iraqi president due in Seoul next week

SEOUL, Feb. 17 (Yonhap) -- Iraqi President Jalal Talabani will come to South
Korea next week for talks with South Korean President Lee Myung-bak on ways to
increase cooperation between the two countries, Seoul's presidential office
Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday.
During his four-day visit that begins Monday, Talabani, 76, will be accompanied
by some 20 Iraqi officials, including those in charge of rehabilitating the
war-torn country, it said.
"The two sides plan to discuss a wide range of issues, including cooperation in
energy, construction and defense industries, as well as expanding the role of our
businesses in the rehabilitation of Iraq," Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.
Talabani will be the first Iraqi president to visit Seoul since the two countries
established diplomatic ties in July 1989, it said.
bdk@yna.co.kr
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