S Korean president arrives in Uzbekistan

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak arrived in Uzbekistan on Tuesday for summit talks with President Islam Karimov and a series of economic cooperation deals, including a US$4 billion contract to develop a gas field and build a related plant, Yonhap news agency reported. During the visit, both sides are expected to sign another deal to export a Korean information technology system to modernize Uzbekistan''s stock market. A series of cooperation accords are also planned in health care, medicine, IT (information technology), textiles and other areas, officials said. The contract to develop the Surgil gas field near the Aral Sea and build a gas and chemicals plant will be the largest-ever cooperation project between the two countries since they established diplomatic relations in 1992. At the summit, Lee and Karimov plan to discuss how to work together for the development of the bilateral strategic partnership and how to boost substantive cooperation in various fields, including energy and resources, infrastructure, finance, and information and technology. They are also expected to exchange views on regional and international developments.