Duterte congratulates new South Korean president

By: Nestor Corrales - 8 years ago

South Korean presidential candidate Moon Jae-in (C) of the Democratic Party waves his supporters as they gather to watch broadcast of the presidential election results at a park near the presidential Blue House in Seoul on May 9, 2017. Left-leaning former human rights lawyer Moon Jae-In won South Korea's presidential election by a landslide on May 9, according to an exit poll, sweeping to power on a yearning for change after a tumultuous scandal. / AFP PHOTO / JUNG Yeon-Je

New South Korean Presidential Moon Jae-in waves his supporters. AFP

President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday congratulated the newly-elected president of the Republic of Korea.

“On behalf of the Filipino nation, President Rodrigo Roa Duterte wishes to extend his warm congratulations to Mr. Moon Jae-in on his election as the new President of the Republic of Korea (ROK),” Presidential Spokesperson Ernesto Abella said in a statement.

READ: Exit poll: Landslide win for Moon in South Korea election

Moon, a human rights lawyer, won the elections after former President Park Geun-hye was impeached and jailed over corruption allegations.

Abella said the government would continue to strengthen its ties with South Korea after Moon’s win.

“The Philippines and the Republic of Korea have strong, comprehensive and long-standing bilateral ties,” he said.

The Palace official said the Philippines and the Republic of Korea “have extensive cooperation on political, economic, cultural and people-to-people exchanges in the bilateral, regional, and multilateral spheres.”

“The Philippines is committed to further enhancing the relations with the ROK under President-elect Moon,” he said. “We wish him all the best. CBB