NARA, Japan — President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi visited an ancient Japanese temple in Nara on Wednesday, in a rare joint sightseeing trip that highlighted deep-rooted cultural exchanges between the two nations. Lee and Takaichi toured Horyu-ji Temple in Nara, which contains some of the world's oldest surviving wooden buildings, as part of a diplomatic event arranged to build their rapport on the second day of Lee's visit to Japan. The architecture is known to have been influenced by the ancient Korean kingdom of Baekje, which ruled the southwestern part of the Korean Peninsula from 18 B.C. to A.D. 660. The temple was designated as Japan's first UNESCO World Heritage site in 1993 and houses the "Baekje Kannon," also known as the Kudara Kannon, a wooden statue of the Bodhisattva of Compassion and a designated cultural treasure. The two leaders met in Nara as Lee proposed holding their next talks in Takaichi's hometown and constituency during their first meeting in the ancient Korean city of Gyeongju in late October on the sidelines of the APEC summit. It m