The President of the Republic of Korea, His Excellency Yoon Suk Yeol, accompanied by Mrs Kim Keon Hee, will pay a State Visit to the United Kingdom as the guest of His Majesty The King from 21st to 23rd November 2023.
Their Majesties The King and Queen will host the State Visit at Buckingham Palace.
State Visit programme
MONDAY 20th NOVEMBER
The President of the Republic of Korea, His Excellency Yoon Suk Yeol, accompanied by Mrs Kim Keon Hee, will arrive privately in the United Kingdom on the afternoon of Monday 20th November, at Stansted Airport.
His Excellency will be greeted on behalf of The King by The Viscount Hood, Lord-in-Waiting to The King.
TUESDAY 21st NOVEMBER
The Prince and Princess of Wales will greet President Yoon Suk Yeol and the First Lady, at their hotel, on behalf of The King on Tuesday morning.
Their Royal Highnesses will then travel with The President and the First Lady to Horse Guards Parade, where The President and the First Lady will receive a Ceremonial Welcome.
The King and Queen will formally welcome The President and the First Lady at the Royal Pavilion on Horse Guards Parade. Presentations will be made, the Guard of Honour will give a Royal Salute and the Republic of Korea’s National Anthem will be played.
The President, accompanied by The King, will then inspect the Guard of Honour, found by F Company Scots Guards. Afterwards, The President and the First Lady will join The King and Queen, and The Prince and Princess of Wales, in a carriage procession along The Mall to Buckingham Palace, where they will be met by a second Guard of Honour found by 1st Battalion Welsh Guards.
Following a private lunch at Buckingham Palace, given by The King, His Majesty will invite The President and the First Lady to view a special exhibition in the Picture Gallery of items from the Royal Collection relating to the Republic of Korea.
After lunch, The President and the First Lady, with His Royal Highness The Duke of Gloucester, will take part in a wreath-laying ceremony at the Korean War Memorial, to mark the 70th anniversary of the end of the war.
The President and the First Lady will then visit Westminster Abbey, where His Excellency will lay a wreath at the Grave of the Unknown Warrior. The President and the First Lady will then take a tour of the Abbey, where they will have the opportunity to meet pensioners from the Royal Hospital Chelsea who saw active service during the Korean War.
Afterwards, The President and the First Lady will travel to the Palace of Westminster, where they will be welcomed by the Speaker of the House of Commons and the Lord Speaker. The President will deliver an Address in the Royal Gallery to Members of both Houses of Parliament and other guests.
In the evening The King, accompanied by The Queen and Members of the Royal Family, will give a State Banquet at Buckingham Palace for The President and the First Lady. His Majesty and The President will both make speeches at the start of the banquet.
WEDNESDAY 22nd NOVEMBER
In the morning, The President will attend Shaping the Future: UK-Korea Business Forum at Mansion House. The forum will bring together CEOs and business representatives from both nations to discuss working together to create business opportunities, and The President will give the opening speech at the event.
Later that morning, at the Royal Society, Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Edinburgh will accompany The President for a roundtable discussion on how we can collectively strengthen the role of basic science to advance humanity, where His Excellency will deliver remarks. The President will be joined for the discussion by notable UK and Korean scientific minds, and will view highlights from the Royal Society’s archives alongside Her Royal Highness.
In the afternoon, The President and the First Lady will travel to No. 10 Downing Street, where The President will have a bilateral meeting with the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Rishi Sunak MP. The First Lady will be hosted by Mrs Murty at No. 10 Downing Street.
Later that afternoon, The President will receive a call by the Leader of the Opposition, Sir Keir Starmer MP.
In the evening, The President and the First Lady, joined by Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, will attend a Banquet at the Guildhall given by the Lord Mayor and City of London Corporation.
The Lord Mayor and The President will both make speeches at the end of the banquet.
THURSDAY 23RD NOVEMBER
In the morning, The President will visit the Churchill War Rooms.
The President and the First Lady will then return to Buckingham Palace to formally bid farewell to The King at the end of the State Visit.
The Lord Chamberlain will bid farewell to The President and the First Lady on behalf of The King, before they depart from Stansted Airport.
