South Korean President Lee Jae Myung departed Seoul on Sunday for a state visit to India. He is visiting as Hormuz crisis cooperation takes center stage on the bilateral agenda. The Iran war has renewed the closure of the Strait of Hormuz. This has added urgent pressure on both countries because they depend heavily on oil and gas imports through this strategic waterway. Lee will hold talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Monday.
The meeting marks the first standalone bilateral summit between the two leaders outside a multilateral gathering. They previously met twice on the sidelines of international summits in Canada and South Africa during 2025. Freedom of navigation through the strait remains vital for both nations. Presidential officials say 61 percent of South Korea’s crude oil imports passed through the strait last year. Furthermore, 54 percent of its naphtha imports used the same route.
India faces even greater exposure to any disruption in the waterway. The country’s petroleum ministry stated that about 90 percent of its LPG imports transit the strait. Those imports supply roughly 60 percent of domestic demand. However, India has raised its crude imports via routes outside Hormuz to 70 percent from about 55 percent previously. National security adviser Wi Sung-lac spoke to reporters on Thursday about the summit’s priorities.
Wi said the two leaders will enhance cooperation on energy and supply chains during their meeting. He also noted they will reaffirm their mutual commitment to peace on the Korean Peninsula. C. Raja Mohan is a Korea chair at a Delhi-based research council. He wrote in a local newspaper that Lee’s visit offers an opportunity for a serious Asian conversation on Hormuz. He added that the Gulf war presents a chance to inject real political content into a relationship long driven largely by commerce.
Mohan cited maritime security and energy security as immediate areas for deeper engagement between the two countries. He also pointed to South Korea’s small modular reactor technology as a promising field for future nuclear energy cooperation. Hormuz crisis cooperation will also spill into the economic agenda of the visit. Wi said Seoul hopes to create new momentum through fresh projects in shipbuilding, maritime industries, finance, artificial intelligence, and defense. He added that Lee’s visit intends to pave the way for more South Korean small and medium sized firms to enter India.
New Delhi’s Make in India manufacturing push and its Production Linked Incentive program have driven this expansion of Korean investment. A high-profile business delegation will accompany Lee during the visit. The Federation of Korean Industries organized the group. It includes Samsung Chair Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Chung Euisun, LG Chair Koo Kwang-mo, and Hyosung Group Chair Cho Hyun-joon. These major conglomerates will participate in business dialogues following the leaders’ summit.
Anant Goenka is president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry. He wrote in a leading Hindi-language newspaper that Lee’s visit signals an important turning point in bilateral ties. Moreover, he said the visit will strengthen defense and energy cooperation while advancing investment and supply chain coordination. He noted that Korea-India cooperation is entering a phase of expansion after 20 years of trust building. After his three-day state visit to India, Lee will travel to Hanoi for meetings with Communist Party General Secretary and President To Lam.
