The presidential election results were closely followed by the international media, with the French daily Le Monde reporting in its Saturday edition that the election proved that South Korea's democracy has matured by one level, as South Koreans chose the candidate who promised to continue cooperation with Pyongyang and increase its sovereignty against the US.

Meanwhile, the British press attributed Roh's win to the recent growth of anti-American sentiment in Korea and predicted a change in Northeast Asian politics, given Roh's equal-footing stance against the US.

Over in the United States, newspapers there also focused on the President-elect's stance towards Washington and said it might complicate relations with the Bush administration, which favors a rather hawkish view on North Korea.

(Arirang TV)