Moon to hold online summit meeting with Uzbek president

SEOUL, Jan. 27 (Yonhap) -- President Moon Jae-in will hold a summit meeting with the president of Uzbekistan via video link this week to explore ways to deepen the two countries' bilateral cooperation, Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday.

Moon will hold the meeting with his Uzbek counterpart, Shavkat Mirziyoyev, on Thursday, marking the South Korean leader's first summit meeting of 2021.

During the meeting, Moon plans to review Seoul's progress in its New Northern Policy and discuss means of bilateral cooperation aimed at socio-economic recovery and advancement in the post-COVID-19 pandemic age.

The New Northern Policy is an initiative of the Moon administration aimed at strengthening cooperation with Central Asian countries under the vision of peace and joint prosperity in Eurasia.

"Even under the coronavirus situation, the two nations have consistently expanded cooperation in a variety of areas, including energy infrastructure and public health," Kang Min-seok, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman, said.

Kang added that the summit will provide the opportunity to deepen the two nations' special strategic partnership relations and push forward Seoul's New North Policy initiative in earnest.

The two leaders previously held a summit in April 2019, when Moon made a four-day state visit to Uzbekistan.

odissy@yna.co.kr
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