South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon called for expanding economic cooperation with Bulgaria on Wednesday, saying he will put a joint economic committee and an industrial cooperation committee between the two countries into full operation next year.

Speaking at a meeting of South Korean businessmen stationed in Bulgaria, Lee said that economic cooperation between South Korea and Bulgaria remains at a nascent level, and it's time to expand it in all directions through the full operation of such cooperation committees.

Lee arrived in Bulgaria on Tuesday for a three-day visit focused on boosting trade and other economic exchanges between the two countries. The trip includes a meeting with President Rumen Radev and talks with his counterpart and Prime Minister Boyko Borissov.

"The impression that I had while entering the city from the airport was that Bulgaria is dynamically initiating an economic takeoff, and has a very much open system," Lee told the businessmen. "In a situation like this, I believe there will be a lot of work that our businessmen should do. I hope all of you will work hard and play a guiding role so as to diversify cooperation (between the two countries)."

Lee is also scheduled to attend a dinner reception to be hosted by the country's parliamentary speaker Dimitar Borisov Glavchev and a ceremony to launch the Korea-Bulgaria chamber of commerce.

The agenda for talks with Borissov includes ways to deepen cooperation between the two countries in the fields of science and technology, information and communications technology, electronic government and agriculture, while exploring new areas of cooperation.

South Korean Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon speaks during a breakfast meeting with South Korean businessmen stationed in Bulgaria during a visit to Sofia on Oct. 25, 2017. (Yonhap)
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