South Korea is set to convene its first-ever summit with Pacific Island nations next week as it seeks to strengthen its influence in an often neglected corner of the Indo-Pacific region. Simultaneously, the island nations look to use this historic platform to press their vital interests, particularly in areas such as climate change and trade.

The two-day summit kicks off May 29 in Seoul and will feature leaders from South Korea, the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) members and the PIF secretary general. The collective goal of the event is to strengthen ROK-Pacific cooperation.