President Lee Holds 30-Minute Phone Call with President Xi Starting at 11:30 a.m.
"Requested China's Role in Denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula"... President Xi: "Peace on the Peninsula is in Our Common Interest"
President Lee Invites President Xi to the APEC Summit in Gyeongju
President Lee Jaemyung, who spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping for the first time since taking office, stated, "China is an important partner in all aspects, including the economy and security. I look forward to working together to build a Korea-China strategic cooperative partnership that can make a tangible contribution to the lives of both peoples."
On the 10th, following his phone call with President Xi, President Lee posted a message on X (formerly Twitter), saying, "President Xi, in his congratulatory message on my inauguration, expressed that he values Korea-China relations and hopes that the two countries can steadily develop their relationship. Through today's call, I was able to reconfirm his intentions." President Lee also added, "As the host countries of APEC this year and next year, our two nations will work closely together through the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)."
The first summit call between President Lee and President Xi took place at 11:30 a.m. and lasted about 30 minutes. Kang Yoojeong, spokesperson for the presidential office, said, "President Xi congratulated President Lee on his election victory and suggested working together to develop the Korea-China strategic cooperative partnership with the new administration."
Spokesperson Kang continued, "President Lee expressed his gratitude for President Xi's congratulations and stated that Korea and China hope to pursue exchanges and cooperation in various fields, including the economy, security, culture, and material exchanges, based on the spirit of reciprocity and equality."
The two leaders also reached a consensus on the importance of developing Korea-China relations. Spokesperson Kang explained, "Both leaders agreed that it is important to develop Korea-China relations in a way that can make a tangible contribution to the lives of both peoples. They decided to make joint efforts to strengthen mutual communication and people-to-people and cultural exchanges, enhance friendly sentiment between the peoples, and achieve results in practical areas such as economic cooperation that can be felt by both sides."
Additionally, President Lee requested China's constructive role in achieving denuclearization, peace, and stability on the Korean Peninsula. In response, President Xi said, "Peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula are in the common interests of both Korea and China, and China will make efforts to resolve issues and promote peace and stability on the peninsula." President Lee also invited President Xi to the APEC summit in Gyeongju and expressed hope for closer exchanges of views to further develop bilateral relations. A presidential office official stated, "There is a mutual understanding that a meeting could take place on the occasion of the APEC summit or through any other opportunity. If President Xi attends the APEC summit, it will be his first visit to Korea in 11 years and is expected to be a significant turning point." The official added, "The next APEC host country will be China."
Meanwhile, President Xi also emphasized during this first call that the Korea-China strategic cooperative partnership should be elevated to a higher level. According to China's state-run Xinhua News Agency, President Xi stated, "China and Korea are close neighbors who cannot be moved apart. Over the 33 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two countries have actively promoted exchanges and cooperation in various fields, transcending differences in ideology and social systems, and have achieved mutual accomplishments and joint development."
President Xi continued, "We must uphold the original intention of establishing diplomatic relations between China and Korea, firmly adhere to the direction of good-neighborly friendship, and maintain the goals of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation. By further developing the Korea-China strategic cooperative partnership to a higher level, we can bring greater certainty to the region and the international situation, which are currently entangled in confusion."
He particularly stressed, "We must work closely on bilateral cooperation and multilateral coordination, jointly safeguard multilateralism and free trade, and ensure the stability and smooth operation of global and regional industrial and supply chains."
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