President Lee Myung-bak has conveyed his congratulations to Barack Obama for becoming the 44th president of the United States.

In a congratulatory letter, Lee said he hopes the U.S. will continue to play a leading role for world peace under Obama’s leadership. Lee also said he hopes Seoul and Washington will continue to work closely together to strengthen bilateral ties.

Upon the launch of the new U.S. administration, the ruling Grand National Party stressed the two nations' need to settle North Korea’s nuclear issue and the ratification of the South Korea-U.S. free trade agreement.

The main opposition Democratic Party urged the Obama administration to open a new era of unity and integration to further promote South Korea-U.S. ties.

The minor Liberty Forward Party expressed hope that the global economy will break out of recession with the launch of a new U.S. government while the Democratic Labor Party said it hopes for advancement in both inter-Korean and North Korea-U.S. relations.