Lee calls for stronger all-round cooperation with Norway

OSLO (Yonhap) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak called for closer economic and other cooperation with Norway on Tuesday as he met with Crown Prince Haakon and parliamentary leaders, officials said.

Lee arrived in Oslo on Monday, for economic cooperation talks with Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg, especially about new shipping lanes in the Arctic region, resource development and green growth.

Norway is the third stop of Lee's weeklong trip that already took him to Vladivostok, Russia, for an annual summit of the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation forum, and Greenland for talks on climate change and resource development. He will visit Kazakhstan Wednesday.

Norway is South Korea's biggest trading partner in northern Europe, and the country also sent medical personnel to help South Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War.

After delivering a peace speech at the University of Oslo, Lee met with deputy parliamentary speaker Marit Nybakk and foreign affairs and defense committee chairwoman Ine Marie Eriksen Soreide, asking them for cooperation in boosting friendship between the two countries and parliamentary exchanges.

The parliamentary leaders noted that economic and trade ties as well as high-level exchanges between the two sides have steadily risen and hoped that substantial cooperation will expand to such areas as ocean resource development and Arctic-related cooperation, the presidential office said.

The sides also agreed to work closely together on climate change and green growth, and the Norwegian side reaffirmed the country's support for Seoul's efforts to promote peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and to resolve the North Korean nuclear standoff, the office said.

Lee then met with Crown Prince Haakon and thanked him for visiting South Korea to attend the Yeosu World Expo. Both sides expressed hopes that increasing high-level exchanges between the two countries will further strengthen their traditional friendship, the office said.

Lee was scheduled to attend roundtable discussions with business leaders of the two countries.  Lee's summit with Prime Minister Stoltenberg is set for Wednesday.