S.Korea to speak with US on G7 invitation

Seoul, May 31 (IANS) South Korea has not received an invitation to the G7 summit from the US after President Donald trump said that he would like to invite Seoul and several other countries to the meeting, but will discuss the matter with Washington, an official from the presidential office said on Sunday.

On Saturday, Trump announced that he had decided to postpone the G7 summit till September or after the US presidential election in November and invite India, Russia, Australia and South Korea.

The summit of leaders from Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the UK and the US was originally to take place in March but has been postponed for months due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“That’s what we will discuss with the US side,” Yonhap News Agency quoted the officials as saying to the media, adding: “But we’ve not been notified of the request in advance.”

The G7 leaders’ meeting, which the US is to host this year as it occupies the rotating presidency of the group, was scheduled from June 10 to 12, reports Efe news.

Trump announced in April the cancellation of the in-person summit due to the rapid expansion and severity of the coronavirus pandemic, and said it would take place virtually.

Earlier in the week, White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said that Trump planned to hold the G7 summit in person at the White House at the end of June.

Also on Saturday it was revealed that German Chancellor Angela Merkel would not not attend a face-to-face meeting in the US unless the course of the coronavirus spread changed.

–IANS

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