At the invitation of NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, President Lee attended the 2026 NATO Summit held in Ankara, Türkiye, from July 7 to 8.

Upon his arrival, President Lee met with Secretary General Rutte and also held a small-group meeting with representatives of NATO’s Indo-Pacific partners, including Japan, Australia and New Zealand. During his talks with Secretary General Rutte, the two sides announced the launch of negotiations on a Korea-NATO procurement agreement that would establish the legal and administrative framework for military and defense industry cooperation and procurement contracts.

Korea will also newly join NATO’s defense raw materials program as an observer. In addition to its existing observer status in NATO’s ammunition and space programs, the new participation is expected to broaden opportunities for Korean companies in the NATO defense market while contributing to a more stable procurement environment for military supplies.

At the same time, Korean space companies joined SpaceNet, NATO’s cooperative network for partner businesses in the space sector, laying the groundwork for information sharing and technological cooperation in NATO-led space projects.

President Lee also attended the NATO Defense Industry Forum.

On the sidelines of the summit, President Lee held bilateral meetings with the leaders of Canada, the U.S., Norway, Ukraine and Romania. Korea discussed expanding cooperation with multiple nations across various sectors, including defense and logistics.

Following the summit, President Lee paid a state visit to Mongolia from July 9 to 11 at the invitation of Mongolian President Ukhnaagiin Khürelsükh.

The two leaders held a summit at the Government Palace in Ulaanbaatar and adopted a joint declaration aimed at ushering in a “golden age” of Korea-Mongolia relations.

At a joint news announcement following the summit, President Lee said the two countries had agreed to expand future-oriented and practical cooperation that delivers tangible benefits to their people. The joint declaration also calls for broader cooperation in areas that directly benefit both peoples, including food security, responses to yellow dust, healthcare, science and technology, in addition to economy, trade, investment, supply chains and critical minerals. It also sets a goal of increasing annual people-to-people exchanges to 500,000 by 2030, the 40th anniversary of diplomatic relations between Korea and Mongolia.