President Park Geun-hye will meet with Uzbek President Islam Karimov here next week to discuss ways to enhance cooperation in defense, infrastructure and other areas of mutual concern, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday.
  

The two leaders are set to meet on Thursday, the first day of Karimov's three-day trip here, the presidential office said in a statement.
  

The planned visit is the first foreign trip after Karimov won reelection in March, a move Seoul says illustrates Uzbekistan's commitment to developing ties with South Korea.
  

He has so far visited South Korea seven times since 1991 when he was elected president in Uzbekistan following its independence from the Soviet Union.
  

The two leaders agreed to push for new joint projects in gas development and solar power during Park's visit to the Central Asia's most populous country in June last year.
  

Uzbekistan is South Korea's largest trading partner among Central Asian nations and home to the largest number of ethnic Koreans in the region.
 

Last year, two-way trade stood at $1.9 billion. (Yonhap)