South Korea to send special envoys to Indonesia this week: Presidential office

Seoul, Aug 10 (IANS) South Korea will send a group of special envoys to Indonesia this week to reaffirm the new Lee Jae Myung government's commitment to deepening ties with the Southeast Asian nation, the presidential office said Sunday.

The delegation, led by Rep. Cho Jeong-sik of the ruling Democratic Party, will make a three-day visit to Jakarta starting Monday, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a message to reporters.

The envoys will meet with key Indonesian government officials and deliver a letter from Lee to Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto outlining efforts to strengthen bilateral ties, Kang said.

They also plan to have broad discussions on ways to further boost practical cooperation in areas such as trade and investment, the defence sector, energy and digital transition, as well as efforts to deepen ties at the regional level involving the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Yonhap news agency reported.

Indonesia is one of the 10 ASEAN member states, which include neighboring countries such as Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia.

Since taking office on June 4, Lee has sent special envoys to the European Union, France, Britain, India, Poland and a few other countries.

Earlier on July 14, Envoy Yoon visited Belgium, where the EU is headquartered, to discuss boosting the bilateral strategic partnership. He also conveyed Korea's intent to expand practical cooperation with the EU in areas such as advanced science and technology.

Envoy Kang departed for France on July 15. The Office of the President earlier said, "By strengthening our 21st century comprehensive partnership, we will expand cooperation with France in strategic industries such as trade, investment, artificial intelligence, space and defense as well as cultural and people-to-people exchanges."

--IANS

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