by WorldTribune Staff, January 6, 2026 Real World News
When you’re meeting with the head communist in charge, why not mark the occasion by snapping a selfie?
That’s exactly what leftist South Korean President Lee Jae-Myung did in the presence of Chinese Communist Party leader Xi Jinping in Beijing on Monday.
Lee was happy to meet President Donald Trump at the White House last year, but was absolutely beside himself in the company of the world’s most brutal Marxist-Leninist dictator. Lee dubbed the moment the selfie “of a lifetime.”
While Lee called for a “new phase” in South Korea-China relations and begged China to lift its unofficial ban on K-pop, Xi made a series of demands while aiming to separate the leftist-led South Korea from conservative-led Japan.
Xi brought up the two countries’ shared history of resisting Japan militarism, saying that China and South Korea should now “work hand in hand to safeguard the outcomes of the victory of World War II and uphold peace and stability in Northeast Asia.”
Xi’s eagerness to meet Lee signals the pressure he faces in finding a regional ally, Park Seung-Chan, professor of China studies at Yongin University, told the BBC.
“China may beat around the bush but its demand is clear: side with China and denounce Japan,” Park said.
Lee was set to meet China’s Premier Li Qiang and the chairman of parliament, Zhao Leji, on Tuesday.
It marks the first visit to China by a South Korean leader since 2019. Bilateral ties had soured under Lee’s predecessor, conservative Yoon Suk-Yeol, who was no fan of China’s steadily expanding influence in the region meant to displace the United States.
On Monday, Lee stated that his visit marked “a crucial opportunity” for the “full-scale restoration of South Korea-China relations,” reported South Korean newspaper Chosun. “We want to usher in a new phase in the development of South Korea-China relations.”
As for the selfie, Lee used a Xiaomi phone that Xi had gifted him last year.
“The image quality is certainly good, right?” Lee posted on X along with the selfie.
East Asia Research Center’s Tara O took to X to post the list of demands Xi made on Lee:
China made 4 key demands to Lee Jae-myung, who is visiting China.
1) Affirm 1 China, & announce it (repeatedly)
2) No operation of equipment/weapons made with US tech cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region
3) Deny deployment of Typhoon missile system
4) Oppose the expansion of…— Tara O (@DrTaraO) January 5, 2026
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