Lee, Obama to hold first summit talks at G-20 in London

SEOUL, March 26 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and his U.S. counterpart Barack Obama will hold their first summit early next month on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in London, the South Korean presidential office said Thursday.

The meeting will provide an important venue for the leaders to discuss current
issues as the world faces an economic downturn, which Lee has called an
"unprecedented crisis."
"At the first Korea-U.S. summit since President Obama's inauguration, President
Lee Myung-bak and the U.S. president will discuss ways to develop the
relationship between the two countries and issues related to the Korean
Peninsula, such as the Korea-U.S. alliance and North Korea," the presidential
office said in a press release.
The G-20 summit, involving the world's 20 largest economies including Japan,
China, Russia and the European Union, is slated for next Thursday. The South
Korean president is expected to make a three-day visit starting Wednesday.
The Lee-Obama meeting also comes as the countries are trying to seal a bilateral
free trade agreement (FTA) signed nearly two years ago. The FTA was negotiated
and signed under previous administrations of both countries and still needs to be
ratified by their respective legislatures.
The summit talks will be kept brief, according to officials here, as both leaders
are set for a series of bilateral and multilateral meetings.
Lee is scheduled to meet with five other heads of state, including Chinese
President Hu Jintao, as well as the head of an international organization during
his three-day visit, they said.
bdk@yna.co.kr
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