President Lee Jae-myung departed for a five-day state visit to France on September 6. This trip follows an invitation from French President Emmanuel Macron, who asked Lee to co-chair the upcoming international film and video summit, the 'Lumière Summit,' during his visit to South Korea in April.
According to the Blue House, President Lee took off for France aboard Air Force One on the morning of his departure. Kim Min-seok, the leader of the Democratic Party, was present at the farewell.
Before leaving, President Lee posted on X (formerly Twitter), stating, "This state visit to France marks the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and France, following President Macron's invitation during his visit in April. I aim to make this a starting point for the next 140 years of trust and friendship built over the past 140 years between our two nations."
He added, "As co-chairs of the 'Lumière Summit,' we will explore the future of the film and video industry and further expand cultural and content cooperation between our countries." He emphasized, "In France, the birthplace of cinema, we will write a new chapter in K-culture and the global film and video industry together."
Meanwhile, in light of the recent devastating floods in Nepal, which have left nine South Koreans unaccounted for, President Lee expressed his condolences, saying, "It is truly heartbreaking to think of the families who have been anxiously waiting for news for over ten days since the disaster occurred. Our embassy and rapid response team will work closely with the Nepalese authorities to make every effort to locate the nine individuals."
Foreign Minister Park Jin is also in Nepal, leading efforts to support the search for the missing individuals. He is scheduled to meet with Nepalese Foreign Minister Bishwa Bandhu Thapa.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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