S. Korean President Lee arrives in New Zealand for talks

By Byun Duk-kun

AUCKLAND, New Zealand, March 3 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak arrived in the city of Auckland Tuesday for talks with New Zealand Prime Minister John Key on ways to jointly fend off the global economic crisis.

The two leaders will hold official talks later in the day and announce the start
of official negotiations for a bilateral free trade agreement (FTA) between their
countries.
Seoul and Wellington have held two rounds of preliminary talks on the envisioned
FTA, and South Korean officials say the sides will likely conclude their
negotiations before the end of the year.
The visit is part of a three-nation trip that will also take the South Korean
president to Australia and Indonesia, in that order.
During his two-day visit here, Lee will also meet with New Zealand's Governor
General Anand Satyanand to discuss ways to increase exchanges and cooperation
between South Korea and its key trade partner in the South Pacific.
Bilateral trade between South Korea, the world's 13th largest economy, and New
Zealand has been on a steady rise, nearly topping US$1.9 billion in 2007,
according to South Korean officials here.
Lee will visit the country's memorial park, where he will meet with New Zealand
veterans who fought in the 1950-53 Korean War and lay a wreath at the tomb of the
unknown soldier, they said.
He will also visit New Zealand's Plant and Food Research center before the summit
with Prime Minister Key and meet with South Korean residents here.
Lee departs early Wednesday for Australia, where he is scheduled to hold talks
with Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and jointly declare the start of
official negotiations for a Korea-Australia FTA.