By Ryu Jin
Staff Reporter



KYONGJU _ Leaders of Australia, Brunei and Vietnam Thursday expressed full support for South Korea’s peace and prosperity policy of engaging North Korea and its efforts for a diplomatic solution to the international standoff over the North’s nuclear program, officials said.
President Roh Moo-hyun, who had a summit with U.S. President George W. Bush in Kyongju earlier in the day, held back-to-back meetings with his counterparts from the three countries in Pusan (Busan) where the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum is underway.

Chong Wa Dae said Roh discussed with them ways to improve bilateral relations, especially in the economic field, and exchanged views on issues, including the North Korean nuclear standoff.

In his 20-minute talk with Australian Prime Minister John Howard, he spoke highly of the bilateral ties between Seoul and Canberra which have deepened cooperation in various fields based on such shared values as the market economy and democracy.

South Korea hoped its goods could further advance into the Australian markets, noting that its trade deficit with Australia recorded $4.3 billion last year, according to Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Ban Ki-moon.

``The two sides also evaluated the close cooperation since the launch of the APEC ministerial meeting and agreed to pursue closer cooperation for the successful hosting of the 2007 APEC forum in Sydney,’’ Ban said.

While meeting with Brunei’s Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, Roh extended special gratitude to Brunei for its support for Seoul’s position on a proposed free trade agreement (FTA) between South Korea and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Roh also thanked the Bruneian king for the stable provision of resources, such as crude oil and natural gas, and hoped the bilateral cooperation between the two countries in the energy field could be expanded in the future, according to government officials.

South Korea imports 10 million barrels of crude oil and 700,000 tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from Brunei per year.

In another meeting with President Tran Duc Luong of Vietnam, the host nation of next year’s APEC forum, Roh also discussed ways to strengthen ties between the two nations. They agreed on the need to expand exchanges in economy, culture and other areas.

Today, Roh will host the first round of APEC summit, where leaders of the 21 APEC member economies would attend, and hold one-on-one talks with leaders from Indonesia, Canada, Chile and Japan on the sidelines of the APEC meeting.

jinryu@koreatimes.co.kr