President Lee Myung-bak met with ruling-party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye Sunday in a rare meeting watched closely for signs of a development in their strained relations ahead of December's presidential election.
The one-on-one lunch meeting at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae came at the request of Park, a five-term lawmaker and eldest daughter of late President Park Chung-hee, who was nominated as the Saenuri Party's standard bearer at a national convention on Aug. 20.
Ruling-party presidential candidate Park Geun-hye told President Lee Myung-bak Sunday that the government should tackle violent crimes by launching a 100-day brainstorming period jointly with the private sector, a party spokesman said.
Her remarks came during a rare one-on-one meeting with the president following a series of rapes and stabbings that have shocked the nation in recent weeks.
"We should set the next 100 days as a 'special safety establishment period' and use it to come up with measures through a public-private partnership in an effort to prevent and deal with various anti-social crimes and create a safe environment," Park was quoted as saying by Rep. Lee Sang-il, a spokesman for the ruling Saenuri Party.
The president replied he agreed that the public and private sectors should work together on such issues, the spokesman told a news conference.
During the 100-minute talks, Lee and Park also discussed ways to help the nation recover from damage from last week's typhoons, and ways to improve the livelihoods of the people.
Their private lunch meeting at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae was watched closely for signs of a development in their strained relations ahead of December's presidential election.
The talks came at the request of Park, a five-term lawmaker and eldest daughter of late President Park Chung-hee, who was nominated as the Saenuri Party's standard bearer at a national convention on Aug. 20.
It was their first such meeting since December when the two held private talks to discuss the situation following the Dec. 17 death of North Korean leader Kim Jong-il.
Lee and Park engaged in a fierce battle for their party's nomination ahead of the previous presidential election in 2007, leaving their respective loyalists deeply at odds with each other throughout most of Lee's five-year term.
Lee is set to step down in February, and he is barred by law from seeking re-election.
Despite their often bumpy relations, marked by disagreements over major state projects and policies, the two greeted each other heartily with laughter and smiles.
During the first few minutes of the meeting, which were open to the press, Lee asked Park about her recent visit to farmlands that suffered heavy damage in last week's typhoons, while the candidate asked the president about his upcoming trip through Russia, Greenland, Norway and Kazakhstan.
"I plan to make pledges (with Greenland) on developing resources and sea routes in the Arctic," Lee said. "Then, the next administration can (develop) them."
Political watchers said both sides were likely to benefit from the meeting.
Lee needs the support of the ruling party and its presidential candidate to fend off criticism from opposition parties as he tries to finish his job amid a number of challenges in the weak domestic economy, a sudden surge in violent crimes and tense diplomatic relations with Japan, they said.
Meanwhile, if Lee is able to end his term without major trouble, Park would face less political bashing from the opposition going into the elections.
"If the meeting ends well, it could lead to a possible meeting between Park and her opponents in the National Assembly," a Saenuri lawmaker said, asking not to be identified. (Yonhap)