A delegation of representatives from eight NATO member countries is set to visit Seoul later this week, in a rare collective visit reflecting the transatlantic security alliance’s heightened interest in the Indo-Pacific region amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.
The three-day visit from Wednesday to Friday aims to “engage in discussions on the security situation in the Indo-Pacific region and other pertinent issues,” South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said Monday.
The participating countries are the United States, the United Kingdom, Italy, Denmark, the Netherlands, the Czech Republic, Romania and Poland, according to the ministry.
The NATO ambassadors are scheduled to meet with South Korea’s Vice Foreign Minister Chang Ho-jin on Wednesday. Throughout their visit, they will also meet Defense Minister Shin Won-sik and partake in various events coordinated by the US Embassy in Seoul.
The upcoming meetings between Shin and the NATO ambassadors will “involve an assessment of the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and surrounding areas and center around defense cooperation between NATO and South Korea,” Jeon Ha-kyu, the spokesperson for South Korea’s Defense Ministry, said Monday.
