SEOUL: President Hu Jintao and his Republic of Korea (ROK) counterpart Lee Myung-bak have agreed to expand cooperation in political, economic and other fields, including the Korean Peninsula nuclear issue.
Hu, who reached Seoul Monday, said: "We agreed to make joint efforts to ensure the Six-Party Talks enter a new phase."
Speaking at a joint press conference with Lee after their meeting, Hu called for the "full implementation" of the second phase of the Korean denuclearization process. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) has to disable its nuclear facilities and declare its programs in the second phase.
Since 2003, China has hosted several rounds of the Six-Party Talks, which also include the US, Russia and Japan. The talks have produced a landmark aid-for-nuclear disablement deal for the DPRK.
The DPRK demolished the nuclear reactor of its cooling tower in Yongbyon in June and handed over its nuclear declaration to China. But the US still is at odds over how to verify the declared programs.
Lee told Hu about Seoul's "endeavor" to develop ROK-DPRK relations on the principle of "co-existence and co-prosperity to realize permanent peace and a common economic community".
Hu and Lee agreed to have frequent exchange visits by senior officials and hold the first high-level strategic bilateral talks later this year, a joint statement said.
More than 6 million people travel between the two countries every year, and the ROK will hold the World Expo two years after 2010, when Shanghai plays host to it. Accordingly, the two countries have designated 2010 as the "Visit China Year" and 2012 as the "Visit ROK Year".
Hu thanked the ROK government and its people for their support to the Beijing Olympics and congratulated its athletes for their good performance.
The ROK hopes to intensify dialogue with China in diplomacy, security, politics and defense, and push forward cooperation in trade, finance and investment, Lee said, asserting that his country would always follow the one-China policy.
Officials of the two countries inked cooperative deals on energy conservation, high-tech, and education after the meeting.
Hu's two-day visit to the ROK is his first stop on a three - country tour. His second halt will be in Dusahnbe, capital of Tajikistan, where he will attend the annual summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, after which he will fly to Turkmenistan.
