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Seoul, Washington still fine-tuning summit agenda

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President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden are set to hold their first summit, May 21, in Washington, D.C., according to Cheong Wa Dae and the White House, Friday. Korea Times file
President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden are set to hold their first summit, May 21, in Washington, D.C., according to Cheong Wa Dae and the White House, Friday. Korea Times file

By Jung Da-min

Cheong Wa Dae and the White House are still fine-tuning agenda items for the first summit between President Moon Jae-in and U.S. President Joe Biden, with their meeting set for May 21 in the United States.

Following the simultaneous announcement of the summit schedule in Washington and Seoul, Thursday (local time) and Friday, respectively, a senior presidential official here told reporters that the specific agenda for the summit was still under discussion between the two governments.

The official dismissed ongoing speculation here that the issue of Seoul's possible joining a U.S.-led strategic group called the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) would top the agenda during the summit.

"Cheong Wa Dae is maintaining the stance that Korea could join any global consultative group if it is in accordance with the government's principle of openness, inclusiveness and transparency," he said.

The issue of Seoul's possible participation in the Quad, which currently is comprised of Australia, India, Japan and the U.S., has drawn attention among diplomatic observers, with Beijing reportedly remaining particularly concerned over the matter. The four-way alliance is seen as an "anti-China coalition" in the region.

While the issue of the U.S. supplying COVID-19 vaccines to other countries is also expected to become a major topic for the upcoming summit, there have been media reports that the matter of designating Korea as an Asian COVID-19 vaccine hub that produces vaccines could also be on the agenda.

Some experts had said earlier that South Korea, with its capability and facilities to produce COVID-19 vaccines, should be designated as the Asian vaccine production hub, through technology transfer from the U.S.

However, the official said these people were getting ahead of the summit, repeating that the agenda has not yet been decided on.

According to Cheong Wa Dae, the summit would cover a wide range of issues from security such as the military alliance between the allies and the complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula to economic cooperation and a joint response to global challenges such as the climate crisis and COVID-19 pandemic.

"The fact that the face-to-face summit will be held early even amid difficult circumstances due to COVID-19 shows the importance of the Korea-U.S. alliance," said Chung Man-ho, senior presidential secretary for public communication, during a regular briefing. "We expect the two leaders will reaffirm the alliance through this meeting, expanding and developing a comprehensive and reciprocal cooperative relationship between the countries."

White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki also said, "President Moon's visit will highlight the ironclad alliance between the United States and the Republic of Korea, and the broad and deep ties between our governments, people and economies."

"President Biden looks forward to working with President Moon to further strengthen our alliance and expand our close cooperation," she added.



Jung Da-min damin.jung@koreatimes.co.kr


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