(Reuters) -South Korea has elected liberal Lee Jae-myung as president to lead the country through a tumultuous period that will require negotiating trade tariffs with the U.S. and mending the scars from his ousted predecessor's shock martial law declaration.
Following are some reactions to his victory:
XI JINPING, PRESIDENT OF CHINA
"On 4 June, President Xi Jinping called Lee Jae-myung to congratulate him on his election as president of South Korea," according to a readout published by China's state broadcaster CCTV.
"Xi Jinping pointed out that China and South Korea are each other's important close neighbours and partners. Over the past 33 years since the establishment of diplomatic relations, the two sides have transcended differences in ideologies and social systems, joined hands and made mutual achievements to achieve a smooth and healthy development of relations between the two countries."
"As an important global and regional country, China is willing to work with the ROK (Republic of Korea) to adhere to the original spirit of when relations were established, strengthen the direction of good-neighbourliness and friendship, and adhere to the goal of mutual benefit and win-win cooperation."
MARCO RUBIO, U.S. SECRETARY OF STATE
"We congratulate President Lee Jae-myung on his election as the next president of the Republic of Korea (ROK)."
"The United States and the Republic of Korea share an ironclad commitment to the Alliance grounded in our Mutual Defence Treaty, shared values, and deep economic ties. We are also modernising the Alliance to meet the demands of today’s strategic environment and address new economic challenges."
"We will also continue to deepen U.S.-Japan-ROK trilateral cooperation to bolster regional security, enhance economic resilience, and defend our shared democratic principles."
SHIGERU ISHIBA, PRIME MINISTER OF JAPAN
"Japan and South Korea are important neighbours that should cooperate as partners on various international issues,"
"The importance of Japan-South Korea relations remains unchanged under the current strategic environment. The cooperation among Japan, South Korea and the United States is also important."
Ishiba also told reporters that the two countries should hold a bilateral summit as soon as possible.
ANTONIO COSTA, PRESIDENT OF THE EUROPEAN COUNCIL
"Looking forward to deepening our strategic partnership as key allies in the Indo-Pacific and beyond. We share a commitment to democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and we highly value South Korea's global role."
DAVID LAMMY, UK FOREIGN MINISTER
"Congratulations Lee Jae-myung on your election victory. Across defence, energy security and economic growth, South Korea is one of the UK’s closest partners in Asia. I look forward to working with you to deepen our collaboration."
(Writing by Saad Sayeed; Editing by Raju Gopalakrishnan)
