South Korean President Lee Jae-myung held his first phone call with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on Tuesday, marking the third such conversation with a foreign leader since taking office last week. According to the South Korean presidential office, Xi began by congratulating Lee on his election victory and expressed hopes of deepening the countries’ “strategic cooperative partnership.” Lee responded by emphasizing mutual benefit and equality, and proposed that the two sides expand cooperation across economic, security and cultural domains.

Lee invited Xi to attend the upcoming APEC summit in Gyeongju this November and expressed hope for more in-depth dialogue during that occasion. He also asked China to play a constructive role in the “denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula,” as well as in maintaining regional peace and stability. Both sides agreed on the importance of strengthening people-to-people exchanges and working-level communication.