Korean and U.S. presidents begin summit

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden kicked off their bilateral summit Wednesday at the White House as the two countries celebrate the 70th anniversary of their bilateral alliance this year.

Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, and U.S. President Joe Biden stand for their countries' national anthems during an arrival ceremony on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington Wednesday ahead of their bilateral summit. [AP/YONHAP]

WASHINGTON – Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden kicked off their summit Wednesday at the White House as the two countries celebrate the 70th anniversary of their bilateral alliance this year.

The U.S. president and first lady, Jill Biden, received Yoon and first lady, Kim Keon-hee, at the White House at around 10 a.m. in an arrival ceremony.

The two presidential couples were reunited after spending time together the previous evening visiting the Korean War Veterans Memorial and exchanging gifts at the White House.

This marks the first state visit by a Korean president to the United States in 12 years. Yoon became Biden's second state guest after French President Emmanuel Macron, who visited the White House last December.

A state visit is the highest-level visit by a foreign leader, typically involving more pomp and ceremony.

The two presidents are set to hold their summit in the Oval Office, where they are expected to discuss a range of issues, including expanding cooperation on extended deterrence, the North Korea issue, economic security and other regional and global matters.

Their talks will be followed by a press conference in the Rose Garden.

The two leaders will later be joined by the first ladies for a state dinner.

The U.S. first lady worked with Korean American chef Edward Lee and White House chefs to develop the menu, which will include Maryland crab cake and braised beef short ribs.

Dessert includes banana split with lemon bar ice cream, mint ginger snap cookie crumble and doenjang (soybean paste) caramel.

Broadway stars Norm Lewis, Jessica Vosk and Lea Salonga will perform at the event.

Ahead of the summit, the two countries adopted a joint statement announcing that Army Corporal Luther H. Story of Georgia, who was killed during the 1950-53 Korean War and had been missing for 73 years, has been accounted for.

The presidential office said that Yoon and Biden met with Story’s family during their visit to the Korean War Veterans Memorial.

Story was killed during a battle at the Nakdong River amid a North Korea army attack in September 1950. In June 1951, he was posthumously awarded the U.S. Medal of Honor Citation, the highest award for his heroic actions, but his remains were only identified by the U.S. Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency earlier this month.

The two countries said the 70th anniversary of the alliance was “as an opportunity to reaffirm our respect and gratitude for the courageous acts of our service members in defense of our freedom, values and democracy.”

Yoon and Biden met each other six times ahead of this state visit summit since the Korean leader took office in May 2022.

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]