President Xi Jinping had a telephone conversation with President Moon Jae-in of the Republic of Korea on the phone on the evening of 13 May.

President Xi noted that both China and the ROK have put COVID-19 under effective control as a result of painstaking efforts. In this joint battle against the virus, the two countries have always stood side by side in solidarity, rendering strong support to one another. China and the ROK were the quickest to set up a joint response mechanism, and have maintained a track record of zero cross-border infection. The two sides also opened the first "fast-track lane" for urgently needed travels without compromising control efforts to facilitate the unimpeded operation of the industrial chain, supply chain and logistic chain in the region. Such effective cooperation has not only helped contain the disease in China and the ROK, which are each other's irreplaceable good neighbor, but also set an example for global COVID-19 response and cooperation. China stands ready to work with the ROK to further step up joint response and R&D of drugs and vaccines, support the World Health Organization in playing its due role, and strengthen communication and coordination in the United Nations, G20, ASEAN Plus Three and other multilateral frameworks, in an effort to bring forward bilateral and global cooperation against the virus.

President Xi noted that China and the ROK will always be close neighbors. The two countries have increasing common interests in pursuing common development and prosperity, maintaining regional peace and stability, and defending multilateralism and free trade, and enjoy growing space for expanding practical cooperation in various fields and delivering greater benefits to the two peoples. President Xi stressed that he attaches great importance to growing relations with the ROK, and will strengthen strategic communication with President Moon to take the China-ROK relationship to a new height.

President Moon commended China's noticeable achievements in the fight against COVID-19 under President Xi's strong leadership, and wished the upcoming "two sessions" (sessions of the National People's Congress and the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference) a full success. The ROK and China have similar approaches and measures in combating COVID-19, and the bilateral cooperation against the disease has been fruitful. In particular, the two countries took the lead in establishing a "fast-track lane" for essential travelers, sending a strong signal of solidarity and cooperation between the two sides and setting a fine example for the world. The ROK will continue its communication and cooperation with China, and play a positive role in boosting solidarity and mutual trust among the international community and defeating the virus. The ROK looks forward to maintaining close contact with the Chinese side to continuously advance the ROK-China relations.