Moon Jae-in to meet with Putin, Pence on margins of ASEAN

South Korean President Moon Jae-in will meet bilaterally with Russian President Vladimir Putin and US Vice President Mike Pence on the sidelines of regional summits to take place in Singapore and Papua New Guinea later this month, his office said Wednesday.

Moon is also scheduled to hold one-on-one talks with Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison and talks are under way with China to set up a meeting with President Xi Jinping, presidential officials said, South Korean News Agency (Yonhap) reported.

Moon plans to visit Singapore on November 13-16 for a series of regional cooperation summits led by the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and then Papua New Guinea on November 17-18 for this year's session of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum.

"We plan to use these visits to improve the international community's understanding and support for our government's efforts to realise complete denuclearisation and build lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula," said Nam Gwan-pyo, deputy chief of the presidential national security office.

In Singapore, Moon plans to discuss ways to further expand substantial cooperation with ASEAN countries and use the East Asia Summit to reaffirm support from member countries for his peace process with North Korea, Nam said.

Moon also plans to offer to host a special summit with ASEAN next year, officials said.

Moon also plans to attend regional free trade talks, known as the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), involving the 10 ASEAN nations, South Korea, China, Japan, Australia, India and New Zealand.

In Papua New Guinea, Moon plans to present his vision for an innovative and inclusive nation at the APEC summit that will take place under the theme of "Harnessing Inclusive Opportunities, Embracing the Digital Future," officials said.

Moon also plans to propose creating a fund aimed at bolstering the digital capabilities of the region.