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Kim Tae-hyo, the first deputy chief of the National Security Office, delivers a briefing on May 18 regarding the upcoming summit between South Korea and the US. (pool photo)

President Yoon Suk-yeol and US President Joe Biden will hold a 90-minute summit at the president’s office in Yongsan on Saturday.

The presidential office stressed that the summit, which will take place a mere 11 days after Yoon's inauguration, will serve as an opportunity to strengthen the South Korea-US alliance into a “comprehensive strategic alliance.” Yoon’s office said that they expect the alliance to expand into the field of technology, going beyond the existing areas of military and economic partnership.

Kim Tae-hyo, first deputy director of the National Security Office, led a briefing on the upcoming summit on Wednesday, where he said that owing to “real-time communication with the US” since the time of the transition committee, the two sides have nearly finished drawing up the joint declaration and the contents to be implemented by both sides, with the exception of a few final matters.

Kim went on to explain the detailed schedule of Biden’s Korea visit.

The US president will arrive in Korea late Friday afternoon and stay for two nights and three days. A summit with Yoon and a joint press conference at the presidential office in Yongsan are scheduled to be held the following day.

The summit, which will kick off at 1:30 pm, will last for 90 minutes and proceed in the order of small-group talks, exchanges, and extended summits talks, followed by a joint press conference scheduled for around 4 pm.

“The first priority with the individual summit talks is to show an action plan on how to strengthen the clear and effective expansive deterrence between South Korea and the US,” Kim said.

An official dinner event hosted by Yoon will be held at the National Museum of Korea beginning at 7 pm on Saturday. A South Korean delegation of 50 people, including officials from the presidential office, administration officials as well as figures from the worlds of business, politics, culture and sports will also be in attendance.

Representatives from the business community include the heads of the country’s four major business conglomerates: Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun, LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo, and SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won.

Also in attendance will be the Chairman of the Federation of Korean Industries Huh Chang-soo, Korea Enterprises Federation Chairman Sohn Kyung-shik, Korea International Trade Association Chairman Christopher Koo, Korea Federation of SMEs (KBIZ) Chairman Kim Ki-mun, and Chairman of the Federation of Middle Market Enterprises of Korea (FOMEK) Choi Jin-sik.

Despite the packed schedule, Biden’s visit is set to focus on key issues of national security and economic security, even beyond the summit on Saturday.

There is a high likelihood Biden will visit Samsung’s semiconductor plant in Pyeongtaek on Friday.

When asked if Yoon and Biden would visit the plant together, Kim said that, in the event that the visit does go ahead, Yoon would also be going and take the opportunity to talk with the workers there.

Some predicted that Biden would visit the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) during his stay, but it appears he has decided against a visit this time around.

“President Biden has already visited [the DMZ] when he was vice president," Kim said, adding that Biden was “preparing for security events with different concepts in different places.”

After leaving for Japan on Sunday, Biden will attend the Quad summit there and declare the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework in Tokyo, Japan, on Monday. Yoon will also attend the launch event via videoconference, Kim said.

Regarding the summit between South Korea and the US, Kim highlighted the fact that the bilateral summit was taking place only 11 days after Yoon’s inauguration, the quickest time for a summit with the US to be held after the inauguration of a new South Korean administration.

“It is also symbolic that President Biden chose Korea as his first destination in the Indo-Pacific,” Kim added.

Asked about whether providing medical supplies to North Korea to assist it with its COVID-19 outbreak will be discussed during the summit, Kim said, “South Korea and the US can discuss North Korea's public health and medical problems, but it will be difficult to discuss concretely since North Korea has yet [to issue] a response [to South Korean overtures].”

By Kim Mi-na, staff reporter

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