South Korea’s president thanks Japan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia for evacuation support

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has sent letters to the leaders of Japan, Qatar and Saudi Arabia expressing gratitude for their assistance in evacuating South Korean nationals from the Middle East, the presidential office said on March 18.

According to Cheong Wa Dae, the evacuations took place amid rising instability in the region linked to the conflict involving the United States, Israel and Iran, Yonhap reports.

In a letter to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Lee thanked Tokyo for helping evacuate 16 South Koreans and their family members on chartered flights on March 11 and March 13. He also highlighted bilateral coordination, noting that Japanese nationals were transported from Saudi Arabia to South Korea aboard a South Korean military aircraft.

“The friendship between the two countries has been further strengthened through this cooperation,” Lee was quoted as saying. “I hope this will serve as an opportunity to further deepen the friendship and trust between our people, and we will continue to work closely together to protect the lives and safety of our citizens.”

Lee also sent a letter to Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, thanking him for Qatar’s role in arranging a special flight that evacuated 322 South Koreans from the Gulf nation on March 9.

In a separate message to Mohammed bin Salman, the South Korean president expressed appreciation for assistance in evacuating 204 nationals from Riyadh over the weekend. The operation marked South Korea’s first airlift evacuation using a military aircraft since the outbreak of the Middle East conflict late last month.

By Sabina Mammadli