SEOUL — President Yoon Suk Yeol is set to host a dinner meeting with former President Lee Myung-bak next week, marking their first formal gathering since Yoon's inauguration in May 2022. The meeting will include their spouses and Yoon's chief of staff, Chung Jin-suk.
According to Yonhap News Agency, the dinner will also be attended by First Lady Kim Keon Hee and Chung Jin-suk, who previously worked under Lee Myung-bak as a senior secretary for political affairs. The details regarding the exact date and location of the meeting remain undisclosed. This occasion marks a significant interaction between Yoon and Lee, following a brief encounter at the funeral of Yoon's father in August 2023.
The meeting comes after President Yoon granted Lee Myung-bak a special pardon in December 2022. Lee, who led the country from 2008 to 2013, was serving a 17-year sentence for bribery and embezzlement before the pardon, which also absolved him of remaining prison terms and approximately 8.2 billion won ($6.48 million) in unpaid fines.