Lee joins world leaders at G7 summit in France, has brief encounter with Trump

President Lee Jae Myung joined world leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump, at the Group of 7 (G7) summit in Évian-les-Bains, France, on Tuesday.

The Iran conflict and Russia’s war on Ukraine were expected to be key topics on the agenda during the three-day G7 summit, which comes after Trump negotiated a tentative deal with Tehran earlier this week to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.  

Earlier Tuesday, Lee arrived at Geneva Airport before heading to the French spa town of Evian-les-Bains, the last leg of a 10-day Europe tour which earlier took him to Belgium and Italy.

Joining an official greeting event for the G7 summit, Lee greeted French President Emmanuel Macron, who holds the G7 rotating presidency. Lee told Macron, who visited Seoul in April, that he was "very happy" to take part in the G7 event and embraced him.

Lee had a brief encounter with Trump, engaging in a 30-second conversation. Trump appeared to have a bright expression, and Lee was seen nodding during the livestreamed event. The two leaders last met on the margins of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, in late October last year.

Lee then took part in a group photo session with the leaders of the participating nations.

Lee requested Trump to play a role in the peaceful resolution of the North Korean issue, and the U.S. president expressed his intention to make efforts toward this end, the Blue House said.

During their chat, Trump asked Lee about the current status of inter-Korean relations, presidential spokesperson Kang said in a statement. Lee in turn asked Trump to “play a leading role in resolving the North Korean issue peacefully, just as you resolved the Middle East war.”

This is Lee's second consecutive year participating in the G7 summit as a partner nation. He attended his first meeting in Canada one year ago shortly after taking office.

The G7 consists of Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States. Other invited partner countries included Brazil, Egypt, India, Kenya, Qatar, Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky joined the G7 and partner country leaders, including Lee, for a working session meeting on “Forging New Partnerships and Rebuilding International Solidarity.” The heads of the World Bank and the African Development Bank also took part in the session.

During the session, Lee shared the Korean government's AI-related vision, including the establishment of a global AI basic society and a global AI hub “to ensure that the technological gap between nations does not lead to an economic gap.”

The global AI hub is designed to jointly solve global challenges such as climate change, health, food, jobs and refugees through AI.

"In this session, participating countries are scheduled to discuss various solutions to strengthen development cooperation in response to the changing environment in which international development aid is shrinking," presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a statement.

She said that Lee planned to “emphasize the need to seek new partnerships between donor countries, such as the G7, and recipient countries,” considering that funds from donor countries fall short of meeting the expanding development needs of recipient nations.

“Being invited to the G7 Summit for the second consecutive year is a deeply meaningful testament to the trust and expectations that the international community places in the Republic of Korea,” Lee wrote on his X account earlier Tuesday. “I will engage in in-depth discussions with the leaders of the G7 members and invited countries on the defining issues of our time, including international partnerships and solidarity, more balanced economic growth, and the future of AI and emerging technologies.”

During the two-day G7 summit, Lee will hold bilateral meetings with leaders of participating countries including France, Germany and Canada. It is uncertain if Lee will hold separate bilateral talks with Trump.

BY SARAH KIM [[email protected]]