Dhaka eyes S Korean President’s visit

Bangladesh is looking forward to a visit by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung as the two countries seek to further strengthen their growing bilateral ties.

State Minister for Foreign Affairs Humaiun Kobir is scheduled to leave for Seoul early Wednesday to convey Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s invitation to President Lee to visit Bangladesh, a senior official told the media.

Ahead of the visit, South Korean Ambassador to Bangladesh Kim Ji-joon met State Minister Kobir at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Tuesday.

Kobir said his visit to Seoul would help create opportunities for further engagement between Bangladesh and South Korea. Ambassador Kim welcomed the decision to convey the invitation personally, calling it a positive step towards strengthening bilateral relations.

The state minister also welcomed the conclusion of negotiations on the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA), expressing hope that the deal would help expand trade and investment between the two countries.

He said Bangladesh attaches great importance to its longstanding relations with South Korea and highlighted growing cooperation in trade, investment, development assistance, human resource development and technology.

During his visit, Kobir is expected to hold meetings with senior Korean officials and representatives of the Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA).

The two sides also discussed opportunities to attract more Korean investment to Bangladesh, particularly in technology, artificial intelligence, shipbuilding, electronics and other high-value, technology-intensive sectors.

Ambassador Kim welcomed the expanding partnership and expressed Korea’s interest in further strengthening cooperation with Bangladesh.

Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral relations and expanding cooperation in areas of mutual interest.