Iraqi defense chief due here to discuss security, economic ties

SEOUL, Jan. 9 (Yonhap) -- Iraq's defense minister will visit South Korea next
week to discuss common Middle East concerns and inspect an industrial plant here,
the defense ministry in Seoul said Friday.
The five-day trip by Abdul Qader begins on Sunday, the Ministry of National
Defense said in a statement, adding he plans to meet with his South Korean
counterpart and tour a local automobile factory.
The visit will come less than a month after South Korea ended its four-year-long
deployment of reconstruction units, Zaytun and Daiman, as part of U.S.-led
international forces in conflict-troubled Iraq.
"The defense ministers of the two sides plan to review mutual interests,
including regional security issues, and hope to develop their military
cooperation further," the statement said.
After meeting with South Korean Defense Minister Lee Sang-hee in Seoul on Monday,
Qader will visit a Tata Daewoo factory in the country's southwestern region. He
also plans to visit joint military quarters at Gyeryongdae, about 140 kilometers
south of Seoul.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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