Putin, Kim Dae-Jung Talk Over Phone

Russian leader Vladimir Putin held on Saturday a phone conversation with South Korean President Kim Dae-jung. The Russian president's press service reports that Vladimir Putin informed his South Korean counterpart on the efforts made by Russia to politically settle the so-called North Korean nuclear problem. Kim Dae-jung expressed his gratitude to the Russian head of state in relation with Russia's positive role in that process.

On his part, Vladimir Putin stressed the principal importance of continuing the inter-Korean process and noted the significance of a regular round of DPRK-South Korea negotiations on the ministerial level that had taken place recently.

In the course of the conversation the Russian president highly assessed Kim Dae-jung's personal contribution to the development of the Russian-Korean relations and the dialog between the North and the South. He expressed confidence that the new Korean leadership would continue this constructive course.