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South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and French President Emmanuel Macron shake hands during a friendly dinner held at the Cheong Wa Dae on April 2. / Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung will pay a three-night, five-day state visit to France from September 6 to 9 at the invitation of French President Emmanuel Macron. During the visit, President Lee will attend the Lumière Summit, an international summit on film and video content, in his capacity as co-chair, and hold a South Korea-France summit with President Macron.

Wi Sung-lac, director of the National Security Office, announced the itinerary for President Lee's visit to France during a briefing at the Chunchugwan press center on the morning of the 4th.

According to Cheong Wa Dae, the visit materialized at President Macron's suggestion. During his state visit to South Korea in April, President Macron held a summit with President Lee and formally proposed that President Lee serve as co-chair of the Lumière Summit.

The Lumière Summit will take place on September 7 in Saint-Paul-de-Vence in southern France. The gathering will address joint response strategies regarding the technological and economic transformations and challenges affecting creation and distribution models across the film and video industries.

Director Wi said, "Together with France, which pioneered the birth and growth of the film industry, we will lead discussions on the future of the global film and video industry as co-chairs," adding, "We will further broaden the foundation for K-content and Korean enterprises to expand into European and global markets."

Following his attendance at the Lumière Summit, President Lee will hold a summit with President Macron in Paris on September 8.

After the summit, he will attend a South Korea-France business roundtable involving about 20 companies from both nations. That evening, a state dinner hosted by President Macron and the First Lady will be held at the Élysée Palace.

With this trip, President Lee completes a mutual exchange of state visits between South Korea and France within five months, following President Macron's visit to Seoul in April.

Director Wi said, "Through substantive cooperation encompassing security, the economy, and people-to-people exchanges, we will add substance to the 'Global Strategic Partnership' with France, which was upgraded last April," adding, "I am confident this will serve as an opportunity to inject fresh momentum into expanding our diplomacy with Europe."

Director Wi further explained, "We will expand cooperation in advanced technology sectors such as artificial intelligence (AI), aerospace, nuclear energy, and biotechnology with France, a leading nation in future industries, while revitalizing exchanges among youth and in science and technology."

He added, "We will prepare thoroughly so that this state visit serves as a starting point to solidify the groundwork for the next 140 years, building on the trust and friendship accumulated between South Korea and France over the past 140 years."

                                                                                                         Park Young-hoon