Chinese President Xi Jinping and South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol have held talks on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali.

The two leaders met on the Indonesian island on Tuesday, the first face-to-face summit meeting between the two countries in about three years.

China's foreign ministry says Xi told Yoon that China and South Korea shoulder important responsibilities in maintaining peace of the region and promoting prosperity of the world.

The ministry says Xi added that China is ready to work with South Korea to "uphold, consolidate and further develop the bilateral relations."

The South Korean presidential office said Yoon told Xi that it is in their countries' interest to closely communicate and cooperate with each other, and his country will work for a mature relationship based on mutual respect.

It also said Yoon hopes China will play a more active and constructive role in urging Pyongyang to refrain from launching ballistic missiles or other provocations.

The office said Xi expressed hopes that South Korea will actively improve inter-Korean relations.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry quoted Xi as saying that the two countries should oppose "politicizing economic cooperation" and "jointly practice true multilateralism." The remark was apparently made with the United States in mind, which is working to strengthen economic ties with its allies.