President Joe Biden and first lady Dr. Jill Biden will welcome South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee to the White House in late April for an official state visit, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said Tuesday.
The state visit will be the second of Biden’s presidency, underscoring close ties between the US and South Korea, and will take place April 26.
“The upcoming visit celebrates the 70th anniversary of the U.S.-ROK alliance, which is critical to advancing peace, stability, and prosperity for our two countries, the Indo-Pacific, and around the world,” Jean-Pierre said in a statement.
She added, “President Biden and President Yoon will highlight the importance and enduring strength of the ironclad U.S.-ROK alliance as well as the United States’ unwavering commitment to the ROK. The presidents will discuss our shared resolve to deepen and broaden our political, economic, security and people-to-people ties.”
The visit will include a state dinner, the White House said. A White House state visit traditionally includes formal ceremonies, bilateral meetings and a black-tie dinner.
Biden previously hosted French President Emmanuel Macron for a state visit, which was held in December, more than halfway through his first term in office and later than previous presidents due to the pandemic.
The presidents have met multiple times the past year, including during visits to Cambodia and the United Nations General Assembly in New York. And Biden met with Yoon on the first stop of his first trip to Asia as president in May 2022, a meeting that came days after Yoon’s inauguration.
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