The country's first multilateral summit with five Central Asian countries is slated for Sept. 16 in Seoul. Shown is a promotional banner for the Korea-Central Asia Summit on Sept. 14 hanging on a street in Seoul's Jongno-gu District. (Park Dae Jin)

By Margareth Theresia

The country's first multilateral summit with five Central Asian countries is slated for Sept. 16 in Seoul.

In a written briefing, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung on Sept. 11 said President Lee Jae Myung will chair the inaugural Korea-Central Asia Summit under the theme "Directions for Korea-Central Asia Cooperation and a Partnership for Stronger Innovation, Prosperity and Connectivity."

Seoul seeks to upgrade the cooperative framework, which has been at the ministerial level since the 2007 launch of the Korea-Central Asia Cooperation Forum, to the summit level. It will also present a mid- to long-term vision for cooperation through the Seoul Declaration to set a sustainable system of multilateral cooperation.

Cheong Wa Dae said it hoped the summit would serve as a starting point for expanding the horizons of the country's diplomacy to Central Asia, whose strategic importance is rising amid the uncertainty of the global landscape.

The plan is to diversify global supply chains through linking Central Asia's abundant critical minerals and energy resources with Korea's exploration and processing know-how. Other goals include expanding opportunities for Korean companies to enter Central Asian markets and land contracts through cooperation in customs clearance, regulations and intellectual property rights, as well as country-specific collaboration in infrastructure and plants.

After the summit, President Lee and the leaders of the five countries will take part in the Korea-Central Asia Business Summit, whose goal is to promote networking among business executives from both sides and raise practical cooperation across sectors. About

500 government and business representatives from each country are expected to attend.

Before the summit, President Lee from Sept. 14-16 will hold bilateral summits with each of the five leaders. The presidents of Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan will make state visits to Korea while those of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan will be on official trips.

President Lee's first talks on Sept. 14 were with Uzbek counterpart Shavkat Mirziyoyev on expanding bilateral cooperation. This was followed by a ceremony to exchange 13 intergovernmental agreements and memorandums of understanding in the presence of the two leaders.

margareth@korea.kr