S. Korean, Indian defense chiefs to hold talks on closer partnerships

SEOUL, June 14 (Yonhap) -- The defense ministers of South Korea and India will hold talks in Seoul later Wednesday on ways to deal with North Korea and expand bilateral military cooperation, Seoul's ministry said.

It is the first meeting between the defense chiefs of the two countries in two years.

During the meeting with his Indian counterpart Arun Jaitley, Defense Minister Han Min-koo will explain the security conditions on the Korean Peninsula, according to Han's office.

"He also plans to request India to continuously participate in the international community's efforts for sanctions and pressure on North Korea," it said.

In addition, the ministers are expected to discuss how to promote defense education-related exchanges, maritime security and defense industry cooperation.

The Indian minister is on a visit to South Korea to attend the second annual meeting of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) to open Friday on the southern resort island of Jeju.

Since establishing formal diplomatic relations with each other in 1973, South Korea and India have maintained close ties in various fields.

During a trip here by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in May 2015, the two sides agreed to upgrade the bilateral relationship to a "special strategic partnership."

The two nations are scheduled to hold a two-plus-two meeting between their vice foreign and defense ministers in the latter half of this year.

lcd@yna.co.kr
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