"I hope he will visit China soon, as the mayor has expressed his intention to invite him."

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Seol Seung-eun = President Lee Jae-myung said on the 2nd regarding the Korea-China summit,"It is very meaningful in that it fully restores Korea-China relations and allows us to move forward together again on the path of pragmatism and coexistence as strategic cooperative partners."

The president made this assessment in a post titled “Korea and China, moving forward together beyond history and toward the future” posted on Facebook that day.

The president held his first summit meeting in Gyeongju with Chinese President Xi Jinping, who was visiting Korea for the first time in 11 years on the occasion of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju the previous day.

The president recalled that President Xi had described the relationship between the two countries as"important and close neighbors who cannot be separated and inseparable cooperative partners" during the meeting, and emphasized that"as President Xi said, the two countries have built trust through long-term exchanges that transcend differences in social systems and ideologies."

He continued,"Although we have faced difficulties, both big and small, I am confident that the deep friendship and history that our two countries have built together have continued unwaveringly and firmly."

The president also mentioned that the two countries agreed to regularize high-level communication channels and expand personnel and regional exchanges during the meeting, explaining that they"agreed to further develop friendly relations."

In particular, he emphasized,"Based on the common understanding that 'people's livelihood is the most important thing,' we will prepare specific cooperation plans in various fields to achieve tangible results that the people of both countries can feel."

He also said,"Through a currency swap agreement worth 70 trillion won (between the two countries), we plan to increase the stability of financial markets and trade, accelerate FTA (Free Trade Agreement) service and investment negotiations, and solidify the institutional foundation for economic cooperation."

President Lee also said,"As Chairman Xi has expressed his intention to invite me, I hope to visit China in the near future so that our two countries can develop into even closer neighbors."

He added,"I would like to express my deep gratitude to President Xi for visiting Korea as a state guest for the first time in 11 years."