Lee returns home after NATO summit, state visit to Mongolia

President Lee Jae Myung and first lady Kim Hea Kyung arrive at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, south of Seoul, Saturday, following NATO summit, state visit to Mongolia. Yonhap

President Lee Jae Myung returned home Saturday after attending this year's North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in Ankara and paying a state visit to Mongolia.

Lee attended the NATO summit on Tuesday and Wednesday in his first appearance at the annual gathering since taking office in June last year.

Lee's participation in the NATO summit facilitated the launch of negotiations on a Korea-NATO procurement framework agreement as the president sought to expand bilateral defense cooperation beyond arms exports to joint defense production and development.

During his state visit to Mongolia, the first by a Korean president in 15 years, Lee held a summit with Mongolian President Ukhnaa Khurelsukh and agreed to expand cooperation in supply chains, including in critical minerals, as well as in other economic and cultural areas.

The two leaders also declared the start of a "golden era" in Korea-Mongolia cooperation, outlining a shared vision for expanding bilateral cooperation.

Back in Seoul, Lee is expected to accelerate the implementation of his policy agenda in the second year of his five-year term, including the "three mega projects" aimed at investing in a semiconductor production cluster and other advanced industrial facilities.