Moon begins six-day trip to India, Singapore
President Moon Jae-in and first lady Kim Jung-sook bow before boarding a plane for India at Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, Sunday. / Yonhap
Summit may focus on North Korea, economic relations
By Lee Min-hyung
President Moon Jae-in kicked off a six-day trip to India and Singapore, Sunday, centered on tightening economic and security partnerships with the countries.
The trip comes as part of his “New Southern Policy” outlining the need for closer partnerships with ASEAN countries.
Moon will actively engage in talks with his Indian and Singaporean counterparts during the trip, and underline the importance of strategic alliances for mutual growth.
This is the first time that the President has visited the two countries since taking office last year.
“India and Singapore are the two core partnering countries for his policy, so his trip will serve as momentum to speed up its implementation,” a Cheong Wa Dae official said Sunday.
“On top of that, we expect the two countries to remain supportive of the government's peace and prosperity efforts on the peninsula,” said the official.
President Moon unveiled the policy last year during a trip to Indonesia. It is based on his “3P” approach ― cooperation on people, prosperity and peace ― for a more solid economic and security alliance with ASEAN countries.
On his visit to India, the President will engage in a hectic schedule to pursue more business partnerships between the two countries.
This includes attending an opening ceremony for a Samsung Electronics manufacturing facility in Noida, 25 kilometers southeast of the country's capital New Delhi. Samsung Group's heir apparent Lee Jae-yong also plans to join the event.
On Tuesday, Moon will hold a summit with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The President will fly to Singapore, Wednesday, and on the following day, have a meeting with Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong. This marks the first time in 15 years for a Korean president to visit the city-state.
On Friday, he will give a speech to 400 Singaporean government officials and opinion leaders.
“The Singaporean government requested that President Moon explain how peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula can be interlinked with peace in ASEAN countries,” said the presidential office official.