PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE

President Yoon Suk Yeol (left), first lady Kim Keon Hee, Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio, and his spouse, Kishida Yuko on May 7 have dinner at the official residence of the president in Hannam-dong, Seoul. (Office of the President)

President Yoon Suk Yeol and first lady Kim Keon Hee on May 7 hosted a dinner for Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio and his spouse Kishida Yuko at the official residence of the president in Hannam-dong, Seoul.

In his residence, the president told the prime minister, "It(the residence) was initially built 55 years ago as a space for the foreign minister to receive guests from overseas," a news release from Senior Secretary to the President for Public Relations Kim Eun Hye said. The dinner featured Hansik (traditional Korean cuisine) made with agricultural ingredients flown in from all over the country.

At the meal, both leaders spoke on issues of common interest such as the culture and sports of their two countries.

Prime Minister Kishida told President Yoon that he looked forward to a good speech by the president on the global agenda at the upcoming Group of Seven (G7) economies summit later this month, something that President Yoon welcomed.

They also discussed their visit earlier in the day to Jingwansa Temple in Seoul's Eunpyeong-gu to attend the Suryukjae, a Buddhist ritual in which a monastic delivers Buddhist teachings and serves food to console and comfort souls and starving ghosts who wander on land and water.

They also talked about Ven. Donghui, a bhikkhuni (fully ordained Buddhist nun) who performed the rite and made several visits to Hiroshima, Japan, for Korean victims of the 1945 atomic bombing on the city.

Prime Minister Kishida is the second foreign leader invited to the president's official residence after Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.

Starting at 7:30 p.m., the dinner lasted around two hours and included a walk around a garden.

Both leaders also attended that afternoon at the Office of the President in Yongsan-gu the official welcoming ceremony for the prime minister, their bilateral summit and joint news conference.

korea.net