South Korean President Lee Myung-bak will visit Russia next week to hold a summit with President Dmitry Medvedev and attend an international conference, Lee's office, Cheong Wa Dae, announced Wednesday.
Lee "plans to visit Russia from Sept. 9-10 to attend the second World Political Forum in Yaroslavl at the invitation of Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and deliver a keynote speech," Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.
Lee and Medvedev are scheduled to hold a summit next Friday on the sidelines of the conference to be held in Yaroslavl, 260 kilometers
northeast of Moscow, it added. The meeting will be their fourth summit.
The leaders plan to "discuss ways to deepen a strategic cooperative partnership between the two nations on the occasion of the 20th anniversary
of the establishment of their diplomatic relations," it said.
They will also have broad discussions on regional security issues and how to promote substantial cooperation on issues of mutual concern, including the upcoming G-20 Seoul Summit in November, Russia's economic modernization
drive and energy and natural resources development, especially in the eastern-most Siberian regions, according to Cheong Wa Dae.
In his speech at the Yaroslavl conference, meanwhile, Lee will introduce South Korea's experience in fast economic development and reaffirm South Korea's resolve to help Russia's ongoing efforts to modernize its economy.
In addition, he will unveil a vision for the development of democracy based on economic growth and information technology.
Medvedev launched the forum last year with the aim of developing it as the "Political Davos Forum." This year's session, to be held under the theme of "The Modern State: Standards of Democracy and Criteria of Efficiency," will draw more than 500 participants from about 20 countries, including Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, former Japanese leader Yukio
Hatoyama, former South African president Thabo Mbeki and former Indian president Abdul Kalam.
"President Lee is also scheduling a summit there with Prime Minister Berlusconi," a Cheong Wa Dae official said.
Lee is to return to Seoul next Saturday.