Yoon's First State Visit to the Netherlands Since Diplomatic Relations... Strengthening Semiconductor Cooperation

President Yoon and First Lady to Visit the Netherlands for 3 Nights and 4 Days from the 11th
Deepening Cooperation in Trade and Investment... Contributing to Semiconductor Supply Chain Establishment
Scheduled Visit to ASML Headquarters... Attending Special Session of Korea-Netherlands Business Forum

President Yoon Suk-yeol will make a state visit to the Netherlands, becoming the first Korean president to do so since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and the Netherlands. The Netherlands is a world-leading producer of semiconductor equipment, and this state visit is expected to further strengthen cooperation between the two countries in the semiconductor sector.

On the 1st, the Presidential Office announced that President Yoon and his wife, Kim Keon-hee, will make a state visit to the Netherlands from December 11 to 14 at the invitation of King Willem-Alexander. This visit marks the first state visit by a Korean president to the Netherlands since diplomatic relations were established in 1961. In the past, President Kim Dae-jung visited Amsterdam in September 2002 en route to the Copenhagen ASEM Summit, and President Park Geun-hye visited The Hague in 2014 to attend the Nuclear Security Summit.

President Yoon Suk-yeol and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte held a joint Korea-Netherlands press conference at the Yongsan Presidential Office building on November 17 last year.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The Netherlands is a traditional ally of Korea, having dispatched more than 5,000 troops during the Korean War before diplomatic relations were established. It is also the largest investor in Korea among European Union (EU) member states and the second-largest trading partner after Germany, serving as a key partner in Korea’s global semiconductor supply chain. The Presidential Office expects that President Yoon’s state visit to the Netherlands will enhance cooperation in trade, investment, and the semiconductor sector, as well as contribute to establishing a stable semiconductor supply chain.

President Yoon will arrive in Amsterdam on the 11th, one day before the official state visit schedule begins, and attend a dinner meeting with the local Korean community to encourage compatriots that evening. On the morning of the 12th, President Yoon and his wife will attend an official welcoming ceremony at Dam Square in Amsterdam, hosted by King Willem-Alexander and Queen M?xima, followed by a reception at the royal palace. A wreath-laying ceremony at the war memorial and a luncheon with the royal couple are also scheduled for the day.

In the afternoon of the same day, President Yoon will visit the headquarters of ASML, a world-renowned semiconductor manufacturing equipment company located in Veldhoven, Netherlands, together with King Willem-Alexander. President Yoon and King Willem-Alexander will tour key facilities at ASML headquarters with Chairman Peter Wennink and discuss ways to strengthen partnerships in semiconductor supply chains and technological innovation. That evening, a state banquet hosted by King Willem-Alexander and Queen M?xima will be held at the Amsterdam Royal Palace, with major figures from politics, business, culture, and science and technology from both countries in attendance.

On the second day of the official schedule, the delegation will move to The Hague, the seat of the Dutch government, for joint meetings with the speakers of the House of Representatives and the Senate, a private meeting with Prime Minister Mark Rutte, a joint press conference, an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) signing ceremony, and a government luncheon hosted by the Prime Minister. After the luncheon, President Yoon and Prime Minister Rutte will visit the Mauritshuis Museum, followed by a visit to the Lee Jun Independence Movement Memorial Hall, which commemorates Korea’s independence activists. Additionally, President Yoon plans to attend a special session of the Korea-Netherlands Business Forum, which will be attended by Korean economic delegates and representatives of major Dutch companies.

For the final event of the state visit, President Yoon and his wife will attend a reciprocal cultural performance on the evening of the 13th, held at a performance hall in downtown Amsterdam, with King Willem-Alexander and Queen M?xima as the guests of honor. After completing a variety of state visit events over four days and three nights, President Yoon and his wife will return to Korea on the 14th.