Park to hold summit with Obama

By Kang Seung-woo

President Park Geun-hye plans to visit Washington next month for a summit with U.S. President Barack Obama, a government source said, Monday.

Their fifth meeting since Park’s inauguration in February 2013 is expected to take place in mid-June, but Cheong Wa Dae has yet to make an official announcement about Park’s trip.

The two heads of state last met in November on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Beijing.

The visit will mark Park’s third trip to the U.S. following ones in May 2013 and September of last year.

In the summit, they are expected to discuss ways to boost the alliance between Seoul and Washington and deter possible aggression from North Korea.

The trip comes about two months after Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met with Obama in Washington and delivered an address to a joint session of Congress.

In May 2013, Park visited the U.S. in her first overseas trip since taking office as president a few months earlier. She visited New York last year to attend the U.N. General Assembly.