President Yoon Suk Yeol waves before boarding the presidential jet at Samarkand International Airport in Uzbekistan, June 15. Yonhap
President Yoon Suk Yeol will visit Washington, D.C. and Hawaii this week to attend the 2024 NATO summit and visit the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command in an apparent move to manage the strengthened ties between North Korea and Russia.
Kim Tae-hyo, South Korea's first deputy director of national security, said in a press briefing Friday that Yoon will depart for the United States, Monday, to attend the summit slated for Tuesday to Thursday. It will be Yoon's third consecutive attendance of an annual NATO summit.
Yoon will arrive in Washington on Wednesday for bilateral meetings with more than five NATO member nations including the Czech Republic, Sweden, Finland and Norway and attend a banquet hosted by U.S. President Joe Biden.
On Thursday, Yoon will have a meeting with the leaders of Japan, Australia and New Zealand, the other Indo-Pacific Partners 4 (IP4) countries which are engaged with NATO, and attend a summit involving NATO members and IP4 countries. Also, he will deliver a speech at the NATO Public Forum.
Prior to the NATO summit, Yoon will be in Honolulu from Monday to Tuesday to pay respects to fallen veterans of the 1950-53 Korean War and visit the U.S. Indo-Pacific Command.
South Korea's First Deputy Director of National Security Kim Tae-hyo announces President Yoon Suk Yeol's trip to the U.S. during a press briefing at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Friday. Yonhap
Yoon's trip came amid increasing geopolitical tensions in Northeast Asia and Europe upon the strengthened military cooperation between North Korea and Russia. Pyongyang has recently enhanced its military cooperation with Moscow through a significant treaty that includes mutual defense assistance in the event of an attack on either party.
Kim said Yoon will "deliver strong messages on the cooperation between Russia and North Korea" during his engagements with NATO members and "will discuss cooperation plans between NATO and IP4 countries."
"Not only South Korea, the U.S. and Japan, but other major countries also deliver their clear messages against the ties between Russia and North Korea," a senior official at the presidential office said.
"During the summit period, there will be a chance for IP4 leaders to meet, and there will be opportunities to deliver joint messages against the Russia-North Korea ties to not only NATO allies but also other Indo-Pacific nations."
Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un exchange documents during a ceremony for their new partnership in Pyongyang, June 19. AP-Yonhap
As the summit is anticipated to focus on strengthening the cooperation scheme between NATO members and IP4 countries, chances are slim for Yoon to have separate summits with the U.S. or Japan during the event.
"The core topics of this NATO summit are the security issues of Europe and the Indo-Pacific, as well as the ongoing war (in Ukraine)," the official said. "Strengthening cooperation between NATO and the IP4 is also a key focus. Therefore, I cannot guarantee whether there will be the time and opportunity to hold separate summits (between South Korea, the U.S. and Japan)."
Instead, gaining attention is a possible meeting between Yoon and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Previously the South Korean government stated that it would "reconsider the issue of providing military support to Ukraine" following the North Korea-Russia treaty.