Lee urges pragmatic cooperation in China talks

Jan 07, 2026, 08:05 am

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President Lee Jae-myung speaks during talks with Chinese Premier Li Qiang at Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing on Jan. 6, during his state visit to China. / Yonhap

President Lee Jae-myung met China’s top economic and legislative leaders on Tuesday, calling for a “pragmatic and mutually beneficial path” as Seoul and Beijing move to solidify improving bilateral ties.

On the third day of his state visit to China, Lee held back-to-back meetings in Beijing with Premier Li Qiang, ranked second in China’s political hierarchy, and Zhao Leji, the country’s third-ranking official and chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress.

The meetings followed Lee’s 90-minute summit with President Xi Jinping a day earlier, where the two leaders agreed to restore the South Korea–China strategic cooperative partnership and work together for peace on the Korean Peninsula.

Lee’s successive engagements with senior Chinese officials were widely seen as an effort to secure broader political backing to sustain the momentum generated by the summit and place bilateral relations firmly back on track.

During a luncheon meeting with Li at the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, Lee said he hoped to make this year “the first year of a full restoration of South Korea–China relations” and to cement bilateral cooperation as an irreversible trend of the times.

“Through two rounds of talks with President Xi yesterday, we shared the view that the strategic cooperative partnership between our two countries should mature further in ways that contribute to people’s livelihoods and peace,” Lee said. “I hope our two nations can expand horizontal and mutually beneficial cooperation suited to the changing times, promote peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in the region, and move forward together on a path of pragmatism and coexistence.”

Lee also cited a Korean proverb, saying, “Friends are better the longer they last, and clothes are better when they are new,” as he called on China to play a constructive role in advancing bilateral ties. This marked the third meeting between Lee and Li since encounters at the ASEAN summit in Malaysia last October and the G20 summit in South Africa in November.

Li responded by saying he was pleased to meet Lee again and expressed his willingness to engage in frank dialogue. “China has always placed great importance on its relationship with South Korea,” Li said, pledging to maintain good-neighborly relations, strengthen strategic communication and political trust, and achieve more tangible results.

Earlier in the day, Lee also met Zhao at the Great Hall of the People, asking for active support from China’s legislature in fostering stable and forward-looking bilateral relations. Zhao said that under the strategic leadership of Xi and Lee, South Korea–China relations had returned to a normal trajectory and entered a new phase, vowing to help ensure their steady long-term development.

After concluding his two-night, three-day stay in Beijing, Lee traveled to Shanghai, where he held a dinner meeting with Chen Jining. Lee is scheduled to return to South Korea on Wednesday after completing his Shanghai itinerary.

#Lee Jae-myung #China state visit #Li Qiang #Zhao Leji #South Korea–China relations