President Erdoğan: South Korea and I are two nations at the opposite ends of Asia, far from each other but close in heart.

President Erdoğan and his wife Emine Erdoğan attended the Official Dinner held in their honor at the Presidential Palace in Seoul, the capital of South Korea, which they visited upon the invitation of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.

Speaking here, Erdoğan stated that he was very pleased to visit the Republic of Korea again after 8 years and thanked him for the sincere hospitality shown to him and his delegation.

President Erdoğan continued as follows: "We are two nations far from each other at the opposite ends of Asia, but close in heart. If destiny is to bring people together, we are the best example that distances cannot be an obstacle. As a Korean proverb says, 'Even if the ends of your clothes touch each other even slightly, this is destiny.' 76 years ago, fate brought us together for the independence of these lands. As you named the Turks, he made us blood brothers. In fact, we are two ancient peoples who have been in contact with each other for over a thousand years. "We want to carry this common past to new horizons where we can contribute to the prosperous future of our citizens and the establishment of peace in the world."

Expressing that his comprehensive meetings with South Korean President Lee gave him great hope on this path, Erdoğan said, "I would like to thank Mr. President and his esteemed companions for their hospitality that made us feel at home. On this occasion, I greet the friendly and ally Korean people with my most heartfelt affections on behalf of their 80 million brothers in Türkiye." he said.