India, S.Korea agree to develop 'Strategic Partnership' in a concrete manner

India and South Korea on Thursday agreed to develop their strategic partnership in a more substantial and concrete manner, and noted that the development of bilateral relations has served to enhance the progress and prosperity of both countries and their peoples.

In the joint statement issued after summit-level talks held here between South Korean President Park Geun-hye and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the two sides also shared the view that there is large potential for further expansion of the mutually beneficial cooperation in various fields given that both countries are major economies in the region.

The two leaders presented the following three elements as a common vision: stronger high-level political cooperation, open economic and trade environment and deeper cultural understanding.

They also agreed to strengthen bilateral strategic communication channels in the political and security field, consolidate the institutional framework for economic cooperation and create more favorable conditions for further expansion of trade and investment, deepen mutual understanding by expanding cultural exchanges and people-to-people interactions, and to closely cooperate with each other as partners on the regional and international stages to address common challenges.