SEOUL, June 9. /TASS/. The upcoming talks between the Russian and South Korean presidents Vladimir Putin and Moon Jae-in will contribute to the expansion of more substantive exchange and cooperation, South Korean Special Presidential Envoy Song Young-gil said at a reception held in the Russian embassy in Seoul to mark the Russia Day.
"I have high expectations for the proposed summit between our two leaders in July on the sidelines of the G20 Hamburg Summit as well as on the occasion of the Eastern Economic Forum 2017 in Vladivostok in September," he said. "I hope that successful summit talks between our two leaders will contribute to the expansion of more substantive exchange and cooperation," the special envoy added. "On my part, I will do my utmost to promote our bilateral ties as well as peace and prosperity in Northeast Asia through the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue," Song Young-gil said.
He went on to say that "during the campaigning for the presidential election, I worked closely with my party’s candidate, the current president Moon Jae-in, on the expansion of economic cooperation between Russia and Korea, especially in areas such as gas supply from East Siberia and Sakhalin, extension of railroad and electricity networks to Korea, cooperation in developing the Arctic Route, and development of the Russian Far East."
After Moon Jae-in was elected president, Song Young-gil visited Russia as Special Presidential Envoy and met with the Russian leader.
"While talking with President Putin, I was deeply touched to confirm that President Putin and President Moon have identical views on many issues, such as our bilateral economic cooperation, trilateral economic cooperation involving Pyongyang, and ways to resolve the North Korean nuclear issue," Song Young-gil said.