President Lee Jae-myung's chief of staff, Kang Hoon-sik, is set to depart for the United Arab Emirates on Thursday to discuss expanding bilateral economic cooperation. The trip focuses on defense, artificial intelligence, and other advanced sectors, following a recent meeting with Abu Dhabi's crown prince.
Kang Hoon-sik, President Lee Jae-myung's chief of staff and special envoy for strategic economic cooperation, will depart for the United Arab Emirates on Thursday. Presidential officials said he is expected to meet senior UAE officials to discuss deepening ties in defense, artificial intelligence (AI), and other advanced technologies.
"Kang plans to discuss ways to establish a strategic economic cooperation model with a key partner nation in the Middle East, covering AI, defense industry and cutting-edge manufacturing, culture, food and bio sectors," a presidential official said, without providing details of his itinerary.
The trip follows President Lee Jae-myung's meeting with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Sheikh Khalid bin Mohamed Al Nahyan on October 31 on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in South Korea, where they discussed expanding defense and arms industry cooperation. Kang also attended the meeting.
The UAE, one of South Korea's major defense partners, signed a contract in 2022 to purchase the Cheongung II midrange surface-to-air missile system. Last month, Kang visited Poland, Romania, and Norway as a special envoy, delivering Lee's personal letters and holding talks with senior officials on expanding arms industry partnerships.
This visit is expected to bolster economic and security cooperation between South Korea and the UAE.