Turkey's Erdogan, East Timor's Ramos-Horta to visit South Korea for summits with Lee

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and East Timorese President Jose Ramos-Horta will separately visit South Korea to hold summits with President Lee Jae Myung, presidential spokesperson Kang Yun-hung said on November 1, 2026.

Kang said Erdogan would make a state visit from Monday through Wednesday, with a summit with Lee on Tuesday. The trip is Erdogan's first to South Korea since 2018 and the second meeting between the two leaders since Lee visited Turkey in November 2025 to attend a NATO summit in Ankara.

During the Tuesday summit, the two leaders are expected to discuss ways to boost bilateral cooperation in trade, investment, the defense industry, nuclear power plants and other future industries, and to share views on the situations on the Korean Peninsula and in the Middle East, Kang said. He said the trip is expected to help strengthen the strategic partnership ahead of the 70th anniversary next year of the two countries establishing diplomatic relations.

Ramos-Horta is scheduled to visit from Thursday through Saturday on an official visit at Lee's invitation, Kang said. It is the first trip to South Korea by an East Timorese leader since the two countries established diplomatic relations in 2002.

Lee and Ramos-Horta will hold a summit on Friday, followed by a signing ceremony for memorandums of understanding, an official luncheon and a joint press announcement. Kang said the two leaders are expected to explore ways to enhance cooperation in diplomacy, security, intellectual property, climate change and human exchanges, and to exchange views on international issues. He said the visit would serve to deepen cooperation between the two countries and may help South Korea contribute to East Timor's sustainable development and to regional peace and prosperity.