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South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol was greeted by Britain’s King Charles III and a navy honor guard on Tuesday in the beginning of a state go to aimed toward strengthening commerce and protection ties between the 2 nations.
The U.Okay. authorities hopes the Korean chief’s formal three-day go to will assist cement an “Indo-Pacific tilt” in its overseas and commerce coverage.
The king and Queen Camilla greeted Yoon and first woman Kim Keon-hee at Horse Guards Parade, a navy parade floor in central London. Inheritor to the throne Prince William and authorities ministers additionally attended the welcome ceremony, the place the king and president inspected rows of troopers from the Scots Guards in gray tunics and bearskin hats.
The visiting couple traveled by horse-drawn coach down an avenue lined with British and Korean flags to Buckingham Palace. The king is because of host a state banquet for the friends on the palace on Tuesday night.
Yoon is also scheduled to deal with Parliament and to carry talks Wednesday with Prime Minister Rishi Sunak targeted on commerce, know-how, and protection. A protection settlement will see the 2 nations’ navies work collectively to curb smuggling and to implement U.N. sanctions imposed on North Korea to curb its nuclear weapons ambitions.
Whereas Yoon was in London, North Korea launched a rocket in what seemed to be its third try to position a navy spy satellite tv for pc into orbit. Pyongyang is set to construct a space-based surveillance system and has sought to obtain technological help in its efforts from Russia.
U.Okay. and Korean officers additionally will formally launch talks on an “upgraded” free commerce settlement to switch their present deal, which largely replicates the preparations the U.Okay. had earlier than it left the European Union.
Britain has launched commerce talks with a number of nations since leaving the EU in 2020, although it has finalized offers solely with Australia and New Zealand. The U.Okay. additionally has joined the Complete and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP, an Asia-Pacific commerce bloc that features Japan and 10 different nations.
Sunak and Yoon are anticipated to signal an settlement masking cooperation in protection and know-how, together with synthetic intelligence. Britain hosted the primary worldwide AI Security Summit this month, and South Korea intends to carry a follow-up occasion subsequent yr.
Britain additionally plans to spend money on South Korean semiconductor manufacturing as a part of worldwide efforts to diversify the provision of the important thing laptop elements. Lots of the superior chips are produced in Taiwan, and the coronavirus pandemic and an more and more assertive China have heightened considerations about future provide.
Sunak mentioned agreements made throughout Yoon’s go to would “drive funding, increase commerce and construct a friendship that not solely helps international stability, however protects our pursuits and lasts the take a look at of time.”
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