President Lee Jae-myung will visit India next week, marking the first bilateral presidential trip between South Korea and India in over a decade. The visit, confirmed by South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on April 3, 2025, follows months of quiet diplomatic engagement aimed at revitalizing strategic ties that have waned since the last high-level exchange in 2014. President Lee is scheduled to meet with Indian President Droupadi Murmu and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi from April 10 to 12, with talks expected to focus on defense cooperation, semiconductor supply chains, and clean energy partnerships. South Korean officials said the agenda includes discussions on joint production of KF-21 Boramae fighter jet components and potential collaboration on India’s Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft (AMCA) program. Both nations are also exploring ways to deepen coordination in the Indo-Pacific, particularly regarding maritime security and responses to regional assertiveness by China. India’s Ministry of External Affairs confirmed the visit on April 4, noting that President Lee’s trip would be the first by a South Korean head of state since former President Lee Myung-bak’s visit in 2010. The ministry added that the talks would review progress on the 2015 Strategic Partnership Agreement and examine opportunities to expand bilateral trade, which reached $27.6 billion in 2023 but remains below potential given the size of both economies. No joint statement or memorandum of understanding has been announced ahead of the visit, and both governments declined to specify whether any formal agreements would be signed during the trip. Officials from both sides said the visit’s primary purpose is to re-establish high-level dialogue after years of limited engagement, during which interactions were largely confined to multilateral forums such as the G20 and ASEAN-led summits. The visit comes as South Korea seeks to diversify its economic and security partnerships amid ongoing tensions with North Korea and shifting alliances in East Asia. India, meanwhile, continues to pursue a foreign policy of strategic autonomy, balancing ties with major powers although expanding cooperation with middle powers like South Korea, Japan, and Australia. Neither government has indicated whether President Lee’s visit will include stops outside New Delhi, and no public events or speeches have been scheduled beyond the official meetings. The South Korean presidential office said further details about the itinerary would be released closer to the date of travel.
