South Korean President Begins Tour of Two Middle Eastern Countries

On October 21, South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will depart for a state visit to Saudi Arabia and Qatar that will last until October 25.

This is the first time a South Korean President has made a state visit to these two Middle Eastern countries.

Economic cooperation will be at the top of President Yoon Suk Yeol's agenda.

The presidential office said that in the first stop, President Yoon will visit Riyadh from October 21-24 and hold a summit with the host country's Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman before attending many other important economic events between the two countries.

The summit comes nearly a year after the Saudi Crown Prince visited Seoul in November 2022, when businesses from both countries signed a total of 26 memorandums of understanding on projects worth about $29 billion.

During the second leg of the trip, President Yoon will visit Doha on October 24-25 and hold talks with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani.

Through this trip, Korea hopes to strengthen existing cooperative relations with both Middle Eastern countries, while promoting new areas of cooperation.

South Korea wants its relations with the Middle East to go beyond energy and construction to include hydrogen, information technology, automobiles, shipbuilding, renewable energy, culture, entertainment and other future industries.

Choi Sang-mok, senior presidential secretary for economic affairs, said President Yoon plans to use the two summits to discuss ways to stabilize oil and gas supplies amid growing international uncertainty and volatile oil prices.

Saudi Arabia and Qatar currently account for 38% and 21% of South Korea's crude oil and gas imports, respectively.

Notably, about 200 members of the economic delegation, including Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong and Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun, will accompany President Yoon on this trip.

Saudi Arabia and Qatar are two of South Korea's major trading partners in the Middle East and key players in the region.

Strengthening friendly cooperation with these partners is of great significance to Korea's economic security.