SEOUL, May 20 (Xinhua) -- South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev talked over the telephone on Tuesday evening and agreed to closely cooperate to settle the nuclear issues on the Korean Peninsula, the Presidential Office said.

    Lee asked Russia to provide continued cooperation in persuading the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) to abandon its nuclear program and join international society, while the new Russian leader pledged to closely cooperate with South Korea for the settlement of the nuclear issue, the office said.

Dmitry Medvedev is sworn in as a new Russian President in Moscow's Kremlin throne room, to replace his long-time mentor, the powerful Vladimir Putin, May 7, 2008. Medvedev was sworn in as president in a solemn ceremony in the Kremlin's throne room on Wednesday, ushering in an uNPRecedented period of dual rule with his predecessor Vladimir Putin, who becomes prime minister.

The two presidents agreed to expand practical economic and commercial cooperation by visiting each other's country in the near future, the office said.

    Prior to the exchange of visits, Lee and Medvedev agreed to hold bilateral summit talks on the sidelines of this year's expanded G8 summit scheduled to take place in Toyako, northern Japan, from July 7-9, said the office.