Premier Li Keqiang met with the Republic of Korea’s President Moon Jae-in on Dec 15 in Beijing.

Premier Li said China and ROK are neighbors, and friendship and cooperation have always been their aspiration since the two countries established diplomatic ties 25 years ago.

The talk between President Xi and Moon on Dec 14 achieved important consensus, and also gave a road map for bilateral relations, the Premier said.

He said China is willing to walk in the same direction as the ROK, further strengthen mutual trust, properly deal with sensitive issues, restart bilateral ties in a correct direction, improve welfare of the two peoples and secure regional peace and stability.

“China and ROK have built a win-win situation with cooperation in various fields and intensive people-to-people exchanges,” Premier Li said. He added in the next phase, both sides should use this positive turning point to improve bilateral ties.

The Premier called for launching the second round of talks on the China-ROK free trade agreement in a timely manner, pushing forward the China-ROK innovation park and expanding cooperation in emerging sectors like finance, artificial intelligence, 5G and big data.

Apart from improving the business environment, people-to-people exchanges should also be enhanced to lay a solid foundation for a long-lasting relationship, he said.

Moon Jae-in said since the establishment of its diplomatic ties with China 25 years ago, the bilateral bond has yielded abundant benefits. ROK is willing to improve the relationship, stepping up cooperation in such areas as innovative industries, financial investment and agriculture.

ROK will start the second round of negotiation on the free trade agreement at an early date, and enhance cultural exchanges, striving to construct another 25 years of partnership to boost mutual development, as well as regional peace and prosperity, he added.