Myanmar President Thein Sein will make a state visit to South Korea next week for talks with President Lee Myung-bak about economic cooperation and regional issues, the presidential office said Thursday.

The Myanmar president’s trip, set for Oct. 8-10, follows Lee’s landmark visit in May to the Southeast Asian nation that has been emerging from international isolation with sweeping democratic reforms since Thein Sein took power last year after decades of military rule.

Lee was the first South Korean president to visit Myanmar since North Korea’s 1983 terrorist bombing that ripped through a Yangon memorial and killed 17 South Koreans, including Cabinet ministers.

Lee and Thein Sein will hold a summit on Oct. 9 to talk about expanding cooperation in trade and investment, resources and energy, infrastructure and construction, as well as development assistance and other issues, the presidential office said in a release. (Yonhap News)