President Lee Myung-bak says he hopes the nation's first astronaut will have a successful mission in space.

At a Cabinet meeting, the president called the astronaut Yi Soyeon's mission a meaningful event, asking the public to support development of the nation's space industry.

The president said he spoke over the phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin Monday to mark South Korea’s first human space flight.

The two leaders promised further space industry cooperation.

The South Korean president said he reached agreement with Russia to develop that country's natural resources.

He said Putin told him that natural resource development projects would succeed with financing from South Korean firms and labor from North Korea.