S. Korean president to hold summit with ASEAN leaders

PATTAYA, Thailand, April 11 (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and the leaders of the 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) hold a summit here Saturday to discuss ways to expand cooperation and fight the global economic crisis that is posing serious challenges for the region.

The Korea-ASEAN summit comes shortly before a special meeting known as the ASEAN
Plus Three Summit that also includes Japan and China.
Lee arrived here Friday on a three-day trip, during which he will also take part
in a separate forum, the East Asia Summit, also called the ASEAN Plus Six Summit,
which will also be attended by India, Australia and New Zealand.
In his talks with the Asian leaders, the South Korean president will urge joint
efforts to overcome the ongoing economic and financial crisis.
"If East Asian countries take the occasion to further upgrade the soundness of
their financial system, their stature on the global economic scene would be
greatly elevated," Lee said in an interview with Thailand's English newspaper,
the Nation, published Saturday.
Lee is also expected to renew his invitation to the ASEAN leaders to a special
Korea-ASEAN summit to be held on South Korea's resort island of Jeju in June,
according to South Korean officials accompanying their president here.
Lee is also scheduled for a bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Taro
Aso here later Saturday.
He returns home Sunday.
bdk@yna.co.kr
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