BEIJING (Yonhap) ― Negotiations between South Korea and China aimed at forging a bilateral free trade pact have entered a “critical” stage, Chinese Premier Li Keqiang said, calling for the two nations to speed up the process of talks to reach a “high-level” agreement.

Li made the remarks during a meeting with South Korean Prime Minister Chung Hong-won on Thursday evening on the sidelines of a regional economic forum on China’s southern island of Hainan, according to a statement released by China’s foreign ministry on Friday.

“At present, the China-Korea FTA negotiations have entered a critical stage,” the statement quoted Li as telling Chung.

Li hopes South Korea and China will “speed up the negotiation process to reach a high-level agreement with the overall balance of interests.”

South Korea and its biggest trading partner, China, began their formal free trade negotiations in May 2012. Since then, they have held 10 rounds of negotiations.

Agriculture and fisheries are considered to be the most sensitive sectors for South Korea, while China categorizes its manufacturing industries, which include the automobile, machinery and oil sectors, as sensitive.