President Lee Jae-myung spoke over the phone with Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese for the first time since taking office last week.

Presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung told reporters that Lee and Albanese spoke for some 15 minutes from 5 p.m. at the request of the prime minister.

Kang said Lee thanked Albanese for congratulating him on his inauguration and assessed that their countries have worked together as comprehensive strategic partners for their stability and prosperity in the region and the world as a whole. 

The two leaders said that based on their long history of trust and solidarity, South Korea and Australia continue to work closely in various fields, including defense, clean energy and critical minerals, and then agreed to continue to strengthen such relations. 

They also agreed to boost communication and cooperation to make substantial progress in establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula and resolving North Korea’s nuclear issue while cooperating for the success of the 2025 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation(APEC) Summit, set for October in the southeastern city of Gyeongju.

Lee and Albanese agreed to meet in person to actively discuss ways to build on their South Korea-Australia relations.