Presidents Moon and Duterte hold summit meeting at Blue House

Let's start with the first visit to Seoul by a head of state from an ASEAN member country. Rodrigo Duterte spent this afternoon in the country's highest office,

hold

ing a

summit

with President Moon Jae-in. Our Cheongwadae correspondent Hwang Hojun shares with us what was discussed. "May our relations remain strong and continue to prosper for the benefit of the Korean and Filipino people." After writing that message in Cheong Wa Dae's guest book, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and his South Korean counterpart held a

summit

meeting

together on Monday. President Duterte is the first head of state from an ASEAN member country to visit Seoul since President Moon took office.

But this was actually the second time that the current

presidents

of South Korea and the Philippines met. The first was on the sidelines of the ASEAN+3 summit and the East Asia Summit, last November. At Monday's

meeting

, the two leaders evaluated very positively the 69 years of diplomatic relations between their countries. "Korea and the Philippines have made remarkable achievements in all areas, including politics, economy, culture and human exchanges over the past 70 years, based on our strong friendship established through the Korean War." President Moon noted that South Korea is the Philippines' fifth largest trading partner and that human exchanges between the two countries have increased steadily.

And to further promote such partnerships, the two leaders agreed to designate 2019 as the year of visit to South Korea and the Philippines,...which will mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations by the two countries. According to a press release from the Blue House, the South Korean president also expressed gratitude for the Philippines' support for the Moon administration's efforts to peacefully resolve the North Korean nuclear issue... as well as for recent improvements in inter-Korean relations. . The two leaders pledged their commitment to denuclearization and establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula. During their meeting, economic cooperation between Seoul and Manila was also discussed.

President Duterte said President Moon's "New Southern Policy," which seeks to expand South Korea's diplomatic relations and economic cooperation with ASEAN nations, will...help the Philippines achieve its own economic goal. Known as "Ambisyon Natin 2040", President Duterte's own long-term policy aims to transform the Philippines into a middle- to upper-income nation by the year 2040 by creating a middle-class society free of poverty and worthy of trust. Shortly after their summit, Presidents Moon and Duterte signed a memorandum of understanding committing to cooperation between their two countries in areas including transportation, trade and renewable energy, which was later followed by a joint press conference.

And to honor the visiting Philippine president, the South Korean president hosted a banquet dinner and cultural performances. President Duterte will leave for Manila on Tuesday. Hwang Hojun, Arirang News.