On Saturday in Gyeongju, Xi Jinping presented South Korean President Lee Jae-myung with a pair of smartphones and joked that he could use them to spy on Lee, telling him to “check if there is a backdoor.” This rare jest from the Chinese leader made headlines in Seoul.
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| Source: Video Screenshot |
The lighthearted exchange took place on Saturday in Gyeongju when Xi and President Lee Jae-myung exchanged gifts on the sidelines of an APEC summit. It marked Xi’s first visit to South Korea in more than a decade.
Xi gave Lee two Xiaomi smartphones with Korean-made displays. Lee quipped: “Is the communication line secure?” Xi laughed.
Pointing at the devices, Xi replied: “You should check if there is a backdoor,” referring to pre-installed software that could allow third-party monitoring. This prompted laughter and applause from Lee.
This brief exchange sparked significant media interest over the weekend as Xi rarely makes jokes, especially about espionage.
"Xi bursts into laughter after Lee jokes about the security of Xiaomi phones," read a headline in the Seoul Shinmun daily on Monday.
A video of the exchange on YouTube received over 800 comments, many of which expressed surprise.
"It feels like martial arts masters trading lines in a duel," wrote one user with the handle 021835.
The moment of levity underscored how the two leaders had grown closer during a series of encounters over two days, Lee’s spokesman, Kim Nam-joon, told Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"From welcoming ceremonies and gift exchanges to a banquet and cultural performances, both leaders had multiple opportunities to engage and build personal chemistry," he said.
"If it weren't for such chemistry, that kind of joke would not have been possible."
When asked if Lee would actually use the phones, Kim told AFP it was possible.
“While nothing has been decided, he could use the phone,” Kim said, adding that the handsets had been presented to Lee and his wife.