German Chancellor Merz to visit Seoul on Thursday for summit with Lee

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will visit South Korea on Thursday for a summit with President Lee Jae Myung. The two leaders are expected to discuss expanding cooperation in advanced industries including semiconductors, AI and batteries, as well as in defense and arms.

Merz will make an official two-day visit Thursday through Friday, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday. The trip coincides with the 19th German Asia-Pacific Business Conference, being held in Seoul.

It is the first bilateral visit to South Korea by a German chancellor in three years, and the first since Merz took office.

President Lee will hold a summit with Merz on Thursday afternoon, the first day of the visit, followed by a joint press statement and an official dinner.

The two leaders last met in June on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Évian, France — about four months ago. It will be their third summit since Merz took office.

The talks are expected to cover a broad range of economic and security cooperation. Topics on the agenda include expanding trade and investment, cooperation in future industries such as batteries, semiconductors and AI, defense and arms industry collaboration, people-to-people exchanges, and regional and international issues.

"Germany is South Korea's largest trading partner in Europe and a key partner country where some 850 Korean companies operate," Cheong Wa Dae Chief Spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing Friday.

Kang added that the summit would feature "in-depth discussions on economic cooperation including trade and investment, future industry cooperation in batteries, semiconductors and AI, defense and arms industry cooperation, expansion of people-to-people exchanges, and regional and international issues."

Germany is one of Europe's leading manufacturing powers and maintains broad trade ties with South Korea across industries including automobiles, machinery and electronics. With both countries sharing strong manufacturing bases, attention is focused on the potential for cooperation to strengthen competitiveness in advanced technology and secure supply chain stability.

Kang said she expects the summit to serve as "an opportunity for the bilateral relationship to leap forward in a strategic and future-oriented direction."