S.Korean president heads to London for queen’s funeral on 3-nation swing

SEOUL: South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol (pix) left for London on Sunday to attend the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, kicking off a three-nation trip that will include his first address to the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), and summits with US President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida.

Yoon’s second overseas trip since taking office will also take him to Canada on the last leg, Yonhap news agency reported.

He is set to arrive in London on Sunday afternoon (local time) and later to visit Westminster Hall, where the Queen lies in state, before attending a reception hosted by King Charles III to express his condolences over the monarch’s death.

Yoon, who is being accompanied by first lady Kim Keon Hee, will be among hundreds of foreign dignitaries attending the Queen’s state funeral at Westminster Abbey on Monday.

Following the funeral, he will depart for New York, where he will spend the biggest portion of his seven-day trip, and engage in a series of high-profile diplomatic events.

One of the highlights will be a keynote address during the General Debate of the 77th UNGA on Tuesday.

Yoon will make his debut on the UN stage with a speech outlining his vision for increasing solidarity among freedom-loving nations, according to his office.

Other highlights will be Yoon’s first-ever summit with Kishida on the sidelines of the UN gathering and a separate summit with Biden.

The Yoon-Kishida meeting will be the first summit between the two countries since December 2019 and raises hope of improving relations badly frayed over wartime forced labour and other issues related to Japan’s 1910-45 colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula.

Yoon’s itinerary in New York also includes separate meetings with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

On the third and final leg of his trip, the president will fly to Canada on Thursday, a country that sent 27,000 troops to fight alongside South Korea in the Korean War, and shares the values of human rights and liberal democracy, according to his office.

Yoon will stop first in Toronto before heading to Ottawa on Friday for a summit with Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and discuss ways to deepen the bilateral strategic partnership ahead of the 60th anniversary of establishing diplomatic ties next year.

Canada is a key producer of core minerals used in the production of EV batteries, with South Korean businesses planning large-scale investments in Canada’s battery sector, according to the presidential office.

Yoon will return home Sept 24.-Bernama

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