French President Emmanuel Macron will travel to Bangkok on November 18 to attend the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit, a region that French diplomacy considers a priority, the Elysee Palace announced on Wednesday.

“This invitation, addressed to a French head of state for the first time since the institution’s inception in 1989, reflects the progress made since the launch of the Indo-Pacific Strategy in 2018,” the French chairman told AFP.

It also reflects, in the words of the French Presidency, “opportunities for new cooperation in this region, which includes 93% of the French exclusive economic zone, which is home to 1.5 million of our citizens, especially in New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Wallis, Futuna, Mayotte and Reunion Island.

Emmanuel Macron will attend this meeting after the G20 summit in Indonesia.

The French presidency said Macron will “exchange views with our partners on new projects in the Indo-Pacific.”