President Lee Jae Myung and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan agreed to strengthen the strategic partnership between their countries in a phone call on Thursday.

Presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing that the Turkish president congratulated Lee on his inauguration, expressing his respect for the restoration of democracy in South Korea. 

Erdoğan also expressed strong interest in further developing ties with his country’s longtime ally South Korea.

In response, Lee said he was pleased that the two countries have continued to advance relations based on their historic bond, forged in blood during the Korean War.

The spokesperson said the two leaders agreed to further deepen bilateral strategic partnership.

Assessing the progress of economic cooperation on trade and investment, the two leaders agreed to advance substantial cooperation in areas such as defense, arms, nuclear power and green energy.