UNITED NATIONS - Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi met his South Korean counterpart Kim Sung-Hwan on Monday to discuss bilateral relations and cooperation.

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between China and South Korea, Yang said at their meeting on the sidelines of the annual UN General Assembly (GA).

The leaders of both countries have attached great importance to bilateral ties, and pragmatic cooperation has seen continuous progress, he said.

The two sides should maintain high-level contacts, deepen all-round cooperation and speed up the process to build the China-South Korea free trade area, said Yang, who is at the UN Headquarters to attend the general debate of the 67th General Assembly session scheduled to open Tuesday morning.

Kim said his country is willing to maintain high-level exchanges with China and enhance cooperation in various fields.

Yang and Kim also exchanged views on international and regional issues of common concern.