Korea and Italy pledged closer ties in advanced industries, including artificial intelligence, semiconductors and critical minerals, during Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s visit to Seoul for a summit with President Lee Jae Myung on Monday. The visit was the first by an Italian prime minister in 19 years, the first by a European leader since Lee took office last June and the first by a foreign leader since the presidential office returned to Cheong Wa Dae late last year. The two leaders had previously met at the G7 meeting in Canada in June and in New York during the U.N. General Assembly in September. In his opening remarks, Lee said cooperation was expanding in advanced sectors, including science and technology, aerospace and defense. Meloni noted that Korea has become one of the world’s largest per capita consumers of Italian goods. “If Italy’s traditional strengths as a scientific powerhouse are combined with the core DNA of the Republic of Korea as a technology leader, the two countries will be able to generate great synergy,” Lee said. “I hope the two countries