Russian, S.Korean Presidents Discuss Korean Issue, Bilateral Ties

Russian President Vladimir Putin and South Korean President Kim Dae Jung held a telephone conversation on the Korean problem and bilateral ties Monday, said the Kremlin press service.

Putin congratulated Kim Dae Jung on the successful summit and named it "a great accomplishment in national reconciliation policy",stressing that "Russia is determined to do everything possible to form an environment that would guarantee the implementation of the North-South accords," according to the press service.

The South Korean president informed Vladimir Putin about the results of the first inter-Korean summit held in Pyongyang last week and thanked the Russian leadership for support and political backing of the forum.

"When discussing bilateral relations, the two sides emphasized their wishes to mark the 10th anniversary of diplomatic relations on September 30 with a major advancement in the constructive partnership between the two countries," said the press service.

Putin thanked Kim Dae Jung for his confirmed invitation to visit South Korea, it added.

On the same day, the Russian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that South Korean Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade Minister Lee Joung Binn will pay an official visit to Moscow on June 28-29 with a goal"to exchange views in the framework of political dialogue, in particular on a settlement in Korea."



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