President Lee Myung-bak discussed bilateral cooperation in trade, business and other pending issues with the leaders of Georgia and Hungary on Thursday, completing his six days of summit diplomacy.

Lee had bilateral talks with the leaders of around 25 nations and international organizations, who were here to attend the two-day Nuclear Security Summit that ended Tuesday.

Lee and his Georgian counterpart Mikheil Saakashvili noted that their bilateral diplomatic relationship has continuously evolved since it was established 20 years ago. They agreed to work closely to find ways to deepen cooperation in trade, business and development, Cheong Wa Dae said in a press release.

Lee also welcomed the establishment last August of the Georgian Embassy in Seoul. He said that the two nations’ friendship has been strengthened through the Georgian mission here, saying that he wanted to share South Korea’s development experience with Georgia.

Saakashvili was elected as president with around 96 percent of the vote in 2004 after his predecessor Eduard Amvrosiyevich Shevardnadze stepped down in November 2003 amid strong protests sparked by allegations of election irregularities.

He won reelection in 2008 with 53 percent of the vote.

During bilateral talks between Lee and his Hungarian counterpart Pal Schmitt, they discussed cooperation in enhancing bilateral ties and addressing regional and global issues.

Lee expressed appreciation to Schmitt for supporting Seoul’s successful bid to host the 2018 Winter Olympics in PyeongChang as a member of the International Olympic Committee.

The two leaders noted that the countries’ relations have developed in a variety of areas since they established diplomatic ties in 1989. Hungary was the first eastern communist bloc nation which Seoul opened official relations with.

They agreed to make efforts to expand their cooperation in trade, investment, nuclear energy, science and technology.

Schmitt was a world-renowned fencer who won two gold medals in the Olympics in 1968 and 1972. Since 1983, he has been an IOC member. From 1995-99, he served as the vice IOC chief.

By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldcorp.com)