President Lee Jae Myung met with Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Khalid bin Mohamed Al Nahyan on the sidelines of the APEC summit on Friday and expressed hope that the prince's visit to South Korea would advance bilateral relations.

Lee, who welcomed the crown prince during their meeting at the Gyeongju Hwabaek International Convention Center, described the United Arab Emirates as the only Middle Eastern nation to have a special strategic partnership with South Korea.

Lee also noted that the city of Gyeongju had exchanges with the Islamic world a thousand years ago, when it was a Silk Road trade hub.

In response, the crown prince relayed UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan’s special regards to Lee.

He emphasized the importance of the South Korea-UAE relationship, calling it special for its foundation in trust, and congratulated Lee on successfully hosting the APEC summit.

The crown prince also invited Lee to visit the UAE as a state guest in November.