Barack Obama 2012-07-01 2 Statement on the Election in South Korea December 19, 2012 I congratulate President-elect Park Geun-hye on her success in the election held on Wednesday. I look forward to working closely with the Park administration to further enhance our extensive cooperation with the Republic of Korea on a wide range of important bilateral, regional, and global issues. The U.S.-R.O.K. alliance serves as a linchpin of peace and security in the Asia-Pacific, and our two nations share a global partnership with deep economic, security, and people-to-people ties. I also wish to reiterate my admiration for all that President Lee has done to strengthen U.S.-R.O.K. relations and promote a global Korea.