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President Lee Jae-myung and the First Lady wave to well-wishers from Air Force One at Seoul Airport in Seongnam on the 6th as they depart for a state visit to France. / Yonhap News

President Lee Jae-myung departed on the 6th for a five-day, three-night state visit to France.

During this state visit, President Lee will attend the "Lumière Summit," an international film and audiovisual summit, as co-chair alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, and will hold a summit meeting on the 8th. With the government having initiated reviews regarding troop deployment to the Strait of Hormuz, related discussions are expected to take place during the summit with President Macron.

President Lee to hold summit with Macron on the 8th, expanding advanced tech cooperation in AI and nuclear energy

President Lee departed for Nice, France, from Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province, on the morning of that day alongside First Lady Kim Hea-kyung. President Lee's state visit to France was arranged upon an invitation extended by President Macron to commemorate the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between South Korea and France.

On the 7th, the day after arriving locally, President Lee will attend the Lumière Summit held in Saint-Paul-de-Vence as co-chair alongside President Macron.

He will then travel to Paris to hold a summit meeting with President Macron on the 8th, discussing cooperation measures in advanced technologies including artificial intelligence (AI), space, nuclear power, and biotechnology, before attending a "South Korea-France Business Roundtable" joined by around 20 companies from both nations. In the evening, he will attend a state dinner hosted by President Macron and the First Lady at the Élysée Palace.

On the 9th, the final day of the tour, President Lee will meet with Yaël Braun-Pivet, President of the French National Assembly, host a luncheon meeting with the Korean community in France, and receive Mathias Cormann, Secretary-General of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD).

Wi Seong-lac, Chief of the National Security Office, said during a pre-trip briefing on the 4th, "Through practical cooperation spanning security, the economy, and people-to-people exchanges, I am confident this will serve as an opportunity to substantiate the 'Global Strategic Partnership' with France that was upgraded last April, while injecting fresh momentum into expanding our diplomacy toward Europe."

He added, "By expanding cooperation in advanced technology sectors such as AI, space, nuclear energy, and biotechnology with France, a leading nation in future industries, and by invigorating exchanges in youth and science and technology, we will further solidify the foundation for sustainable development in bilateral ties," stressing, "We will lead discussions on the future of the global film and audiovisual industries, further broadening the groundwork for K-content and South Korean companies to enter European and global markets."

President Lee torn between alliance and public sentiment, likely to discuss Hormuz in depth

In particular, President Lee, who is wrestling with the decision on troop deployment to the Strait of Hormuz, is expected to engage in specific discussions on the matter with President Macron.

Regarding the troop deployment to the Strait of Hormuz, Cheong Wa Dae virtually acknowledged that it is reviewing deployment, stating on the 4th, "To make a substantive contribution in Hormuz, readiness on the Korean Peninsula must be taken into account, and various reviews are underway concerning that readiness."

Given that President Macron has been leading an international coalition with the UK to stabilize the Strait of Hormuz and that the two leaders discussed the issue during a Cheong Wa Dae summit in April, weight is being placed on the possibility that they will establish more concrete and advanced response plans during this meeting.

A senior Cheong Wa Dae official said, "France was among the first countries to move proactively toward international solidarity for transit through Hormuz," adding, "Since discussions took place during the last summit as well, the possibility cannot be ruled out."

However, public backlash following any troop deployment adds to President Lee's dilemma.

According to Cheong Wa Dae, multiple pending issues between South Korea and the U.S., such as the introduction of nuclear-powered submarines, investment projects in the U.S., and the Coupang fallout, are interlinked. If President Lee decides to deploy troops to Hormuz, it is highly likely to provide a simultaneous breakthrough for these various South Korea-U.S. issues; however, it creates a paradox where he must endure a loss of governing momentum caused by a public backlash.

With President Lee's approval ratings repeatedly hitting record lows, a decision to dispatch troops to Hormuz could become another major liability, leading observers to anticipate that President Lee will carefully weigh various possibilities before reaching a final decision on troop deployment.

                                                                                                              Hong Sun-mi