President Lee Jae Myung has met with French President Emmanuel Macron and expressed hope of elevating the bilateral relationship between South Korea and France to a strategic partnership.

The two leaders held a summit on Saturday in Johannesburg on the margins of the G20 gathering.

In the bilateral summit, Lee told Macron that their meeting would further strengthen the special relationship between South Korea and France and suggested forming a strategic partnership.

Highlighting that next year marks the 140th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the two nations, Lee invited Macron to visit South Korea next year.

Macron thanked Lee for the invitation and said he will consider visiting next year to commemorate the anniversary.

The French president emphasized that the two nations should continue cooperating in various areas, including security, quantum technology, artificial intelligence, space, nuclear energy and renewable energy.