PRESIDENT LEE THANKS TURKMENISTAN, SINGAPORE FOR HELPING EVACUATE S.KOREANS FROM MIDDLE EAST

SEOUL, March 9 (Bernama-Yonhap) -- South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung has sent letters of appreciation to the leaders of Turkmenistan and Singapore for their assistance in evacuating its citizens from the Middle East amid rising regional tensions, the presidential office, Cheong Wa Dae, said Monday.

Yonhap News reported that in a letter to Turkmen President Serdar Berdimuhamedow, Lee expressed gratitude for Turkmenistan's cooperation in helping 25 South Korean nationals staying in Iran, as well as four Iranian nationals who are family members of Korean nationals, safely evacuate to Turkmenistan last week.

At the time, the Turkmen government designated a dedicated checkpoint to allow South Koreans to safely cross the Iranian border and cooperated in expediting the necessary procedures.

"Lee assessed that Turkmenistan's support for the evacuation served as an opportunity to reaffirm the depth of friendship and trust between the two countries," presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing.

Lee also sent a letter to Singaporean Prime Minister Lawrence Wong to thank him for Singapore's assistance in helping four South Korean nationals staying in Oman travel safely to the Southeast Asian nation on a chartered flight over the weekend.

In the letter, Lee said the support, which came days after his summit with Wong in Singapore last Monday, demonstrated the strategic partnership between the two nations based on mutual trust, Kang said.

-- BERNAMA-YONHAP