Lee quips Italy should have met Korea on the World Cup pitch

President Lee Jae Myung held his third official summit with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on Friday (local time), with the two leaders agreeing to further strengthen bilateral ties following the elevation of the relationship to a "special strategic partnership." The visit marks the first state visit to Italy by a South Korean president in 26 years.

The summit was held over lunch at Villa Doria Pamphilj, the Italian prime minister's official guesthouse in Rome. Meloni welcomed Lee and said she found it meaningful that he had arrived as Italy's first state guest of the year, just five months after her own visit to South Korea in January. She also congratulated South Korea's national team on its opening match victory at the 2026 FIFA World Cup, played in the early hours of that morning.

Lee thanked Meloni for her warm reception and the congratulations on the football result, but added with a note of regret that it was a shame the two countries had not faced each other in the tournament. He expressed hope that the meeting would serve as another starting point for a new chapter of cooperation between the two nations.

The two leaders also welcomed the adoption of the "2026–2030 Korea-Italy Strategic Action Plan," first proposed by Meloni during her January visit to Seoul, and agreed it would serve as a useful instrument for expanding the scope of bilateral cooperation.

They further noted that the two countries are maintaining closer ties than ever and agreed to work toward growing annual people-to-people exchanges — currently around one million — to 1.5 million by 2034, when the two countries mark the 150th anniversary of diplomatic relations.

To that end, both sides agreed to create an environment conducive to more active business exchanges in trade and investment.

Among the concrete outcomes, the two sides signed a memorandum of understanding on advanced science, technology and ICT cooperation. A Korea-Italy Business Roundtable was also held that afternoon with more than 30 business leaders from both countries, including Samsung Electronics Chairman Lee Jae-yong.

President Lee expressed gratitude for the swift response by Italian authorities and parliament in resolving provisions of Italy's super-accelerated depreciation regime that had been unfavorable to Korean companies — an issue he had raised with Prime Minister Meloni during her January visit to Seoul.

The super-accelerated depreciation regime is a tax incentive that allows companies investing in innovative machinery and equipment to claim depreciation costs exceeding the actual purchase price, thereby reducing their corporate tax burden.

Lee said the episode demonstrated the strong will and mutual trust between the two governments, calling it a proactive example of preventing negative impacts on businesses through high-level bilateral consultations. He added that the South Korean government would pay close attention to ensuring smooth and stable business operations for Italian companies in Korea.

In science, technology and advanced industry, the two leaders agreed to develop mutually beneficial cooperation based on each country's strengths, building on the semiconductor cooperation MOU signed during Meloni's January visit to Seoul and the advanced science, technology and ICT cooperation MOU concluded during this visit.

They also agreed to continue strengthening strategic coordination between the two countries' space agencies on shared interests, including satellite orbit and position tracking and risk response.

On culture and people-to-people exchanges, Lee said he hoped the film co-production agreement concluded during the visit would generate synergies by combining the two countries' cultural strengths.

He also expressed hope that the outcomes of the visit — including the launch of a Korean-language audio guide service at the Roman Forum and the signing of a cooperation MOU between the National Museum of Korea and the Uffizi Gallery — would further promote friendly exchanges between the two peoples.

The two leaders also agreed on the need to deepen cooperation in addressing global issues.

In particular, they agreed that the two countries must work more closely together to overcome the supply chain crisis stemming from the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and to jointly pursue energy security.