[News Today] Lee speaks by phone with Xi

[LEAD]
President Lee Jae-myung spoke with Chinese President Xi Jinping yesterday, wrapping up his first round of phone diplomacy with leaders of the United States, Japan, and China. He invited Xi to the APEC Summit in Gyeongju this November, and urged Beijing to take an active role in advancing denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula.

[REPORT]
On Tuesday, six days after his inauguration, President Lee Jae-myung held a phone conversation with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping.

Lee said he hopes for vigorous economic, security, cultural and human exchanges.

Xi expressed his willingness to boost bilateral cooperation to further develop the two nations' strategic partnership.

Kang Yu-jung / Presidential Spokesperson
Both leaders agreed to work together to produce results in areas of cooperation that people in both countries can feel.

Lee asked for Beijing's constructive role in promoting denuclearization, peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula.

Xi responded by pledging cooperation to pursue the two nations' shared interests.

Lee has invited Xi to the APEC Summit slated for later this year in Gyeongju.

If the Chinese leader visits Korea for the first time in 11 years, it will be an important turning point in bilateral relations.

The phone call with Xi lasted for about 30 minutes.

It came after Lee's phone calls with his U.S. and Japanese counterparts, but it lasted the longest.

Park Byung-kwang / Institution for Nat'l Security Strategy
Though brief, all key points were delivered. It showed the foreign policy's priority is on maintaining stable ties with the U.S., Japan and China.

A presidential official said the call order was arranged based on both leaders’ schedules.

Amid U.S.-China tensions, some pundits say this reflects a pragmatic, national interest-based diplomacy focused on trilateral cooperation with Washington and Tokyo.

It’s also seen as a move to ease U.S. and Japanese concerns about Korea leaning toward China.