South Korea’s special envoy to China expressed President-elect Lee Myung-bak’s wish to forge closer ties with Beijing, representatives following Rep. Park Geun-hye said Thursday (Jan. 17).

In a meeting with Hu Jintao in the Chinese capital, the three-term lawmaker and former chairwoman of the conservative Grand National Party (GNP) said the incoming administration wants bilateral relations with China to advance to the next level.

"She said this is the wish of South Korea’s next president," an aide to Park said.

The daughter of late South Korean President Park Chung-hee also conveyed a personal letter to Hu written by Lee, expressing his appreciation for China’s past mediation that persuaded North Korea to peacefully dismantle its clandestine nuclear program.

Hu in response said that he hopes bilateral relations will develop further in the coming years, and again extended an invitation to Lee to visit China in the near future.

China played a key role in the six-party talks to persuade North Korea to give up its nuclear ambitions in exchange for economic benefits and political assurances. The members of the six-party talks are the two Koreas, the United States, Japan, China and Russia, with China acting as chair.

Earlier in the day, Park met with Gu Xiulian, vice-chairwoman of the Standing Committee of China’s National People’s Congress.

The two women discussed advancing bilateral relations and promoting parliamentary exchanges.

The South Korean lawmaker also met with South Korean businessmen, who expressed a desire for Seoul to take a more active role in convincing Beijing to ease administrative red tape and policies that adversely affect operations.

Park and other members of her delegation are to meet Wang Jiarui, head of the Communist Party’s international department, on Friday before returning to Seoul the following day.