The Republic of Korea's President Moon Jae-in speaks at the National Assembly in Seoul on Oct 28, 2020. (PHOTO / AFP)

SEOUL - President Moon Jae-in said on Monday that the Republic of Korea (ROK) will ensure there is no gap in the alliance with the United States and the process of building peace on the Korean peninsula, as he congratulated Joe Biden on his US presidential election win.

ROK found outgoing US President Donald Trump a willing partner in efforts to meet with Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) top leader Kim Jong-un. However, the relationship was strained by disagreements over exactly how to engage with Pyongyang, trade and Trump's demand that Seoul pay billions of dollars more to support the US troop presence on the peninsula.

The ROK government will work to promote economic relations through bilateral trade and policies and cooperate towards carbon neutrality and tackle climate change, said President Moon Jae-in

"We will gather forces as an alliance on the shared values of democracy, peace, human rights, international solidarity and multilateral cooperation," Moon told his top aides, the presidential Blue House said in a statement regarding the incoming Biden administration.

The ROK government will work to promote economic relations through bilateral trade and policies and cooperate towards carbon neutrality and tackle climate change, said Moon.

He also vowed to make progress on denuclearisation on the peninsula with the next administration, while seeking new opportunities and solutions to improve inter-Korean ties.

ROK's ruling party floor leader Kim Tae-nyeon on Monday separately called for an arrangement of an early summit between Moon and Biden once he is inaugurated.

On Sunday, ROK’s foreign minister arrived in Washington for talks with her American counterpart, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who cancelled his planned visit to Seoul last month after Trump tested positive for the coronavirus.

Speaking to reporters after visiting the Korean War Veterans Memorial, Kang Kyung-wha  said it was too soon to predict how the new US administration would handle specific issues, but she didn’t expect Biden to return to former US President Barack Obama’s policy of strategic patience toward DPRK.

"It should be made based on various progress and achievements made the past three years."

Yonhap said Kang would meet Biden's foreign affairs and security members and discuss cooperation during her unusually long visit to the United States, without elaborating.

Her agenda includes sitting with Pompeo on Monday to discuss solidifying the alliance between the two countries and the issues at stake on the Korean peninsula. She had said she would also meet with senators and scholars.

READ MORE: ROK's top diplomat to visit US amid election uncertainty