Uzbek President Islam Karimov will make a state visit to South Korea this week for talks with President Lee Myung-bak about boosting economic cooperation between the two countries, the presidential office said Tuesday.

After he arrives in the country Wednesday, Karimov is scheduled to hold a summit with Lee on Thursday on how to bolster cooperation in trade and investment, energy and resources, infrastructure and all other areas, the presidential office said in a statement.

His visit comes as this year marks the 20th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the countries.

Thursday's summit, which will be the sixth between Lee and Karimov, is expected to ensure that massive economic projects, such as development of the Surgil gas field near the Aral Sea and a project to build a gas and chemical plant in the Central Asian nation, will go smoothly, the office said.

Karimov also plans to meet separately with National Assembly Speaker Kang Chang-hee and Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik, the office said. (Yonhap)