MOSCOW. Sept 29 (Interfax-AVN) - Russia and South Korea will raise their relations to the level of strategic partnership, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said.
"The dynamics of Russian-Korean ties has grown significantly over the past few years. We agreed with Mr. [South Korean President] Lee Myung-bak that the common task now is to fix them at the level of strategic partnership," Medvedev said after the talks with the South Korean leader on Monday.
The talks were crowned by a joint statement that "defined measures to advance key directions of bilateral cooperation and basic principles of interaction on the international arena," he said.
"We agreed to intensify the political dialogue, primarily at the highest level, to promote contacts between ministries and agencies, business representatives and promoting contacts between our people, of course. I am convinced that the agreement simplifying visa issue signed today is a practical contribution to the fulfillment of this task," Medvedev said.
"I regard concerted practical steps to prepare the celebration of the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations in 2010 as an important step to strengthen ties between the peoples of Russia and South Korea," he said.