Anchor: South Korean President Moon Jae-in held a meeting with leaders of the ten-member Association of South East Asian Nations, or ASEAN, in Singapore on Wednesday. Moon offered to hold a special summit next year to celebrate the 30-years of South Korea-ASEAN relations, which the leaders agreed to. The president also said he would consider inviting North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. 
Alannah Hill has more. 

Report: President Moon Jae-in says he hopes to hold a special summit with the leaders of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations(ASEAN) in South Korea next year as well as the first South Korea-Mekong summit.

[Sound bite: President Moon Jae-in (Korean)]
"The new southern policy, which I declared, is a strong commitment from Korea to co-prosperity with ASEAN. In the past year I met with ASEAN leaders in person, shared my vision, and strived to build a sound foundation for our cooperation. By next year, I hope to meet with all leaders of ASEAN to build deeper trust."

In a speech delivered at the 20th South Korea-ASEAN summit in Singapore on Wednesday, Moon said he wants to start a new future with ASEAN leaders next year when South Korea will mark the 30th anniversary of forming diplomatic ties with the association.

The South Korean presidential office said that the ASEAN-member states expressed their support to Moon's offer. 

While chairing the meeting, Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong stressed the robust economic relationship between South Korea and the ASEAN. 

[Sound bite: Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong (English)]
"I thank President Moon for his strong commitment to expand ASEAN-ROK cooperation in line with his new southern policy. Next year marks 30 years of dialogue relations between ASEAN and the Republic of Korea. The ROK has proposed to host an ASEAN-ROK commemorative summit to celebrate this milestone. It will be a good opportunity to take our cooperation further steps forward." 

Moon also said he would consider Indonesian President Joko Widodo’s suggestion that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un be invited to the special summit in the South. 

Moon said the summits will further boost ties between South Korea and the association, expressing hope that peace and prosperity in Asia will come more rapidly with united efforts.  

The president said his “New Southern Policy” shows South Korea’s strong determination to yield joint prosperity with the ASEAN, citing that he met with the leaders of the member nations during the past year and sought to build support for the policy. He stressed that he will meet with all leaders by next year to build further trust.
Alannah Hill, KBS World Radio News.