South Korean President Lee to skip NATO summit, citing uncertainty in Middle East situation

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung has decided to skip the NATO summit to be held in The Hague, Netherlands, on the 24th and 25th of this month.
The decision was reportedly made in consideration of the uncertainty surrounding the Middle East situation, including a possible US attack on Iran. On the 22nd, the presidential office said in a written briefing, "The government is taking measures to deal with the many national issues that have piled up immediately after the inauguration of the president.
"Despite the pending issues, I have been actively considering having the president attend this NATO summit," he explained. "However, due to various pending domestic issues and the situation in the Middle East,
"After taking into consideration the uncertainty surrounding the summit and other factors, we have decided that the president will not attend in person this time," the presidential office said.
"We will discuss this," he added. NATO has been working with four countries - South Korea, Japan, Australia and New Zealand (IP4, or India-Pacific) - since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
South Korea has invited four of its four regional partners to the summit. Former South Korean President Yoon Seok-yeol attended the NATO summit for three consecutive years, but President Lee decided not to attend.
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