South Korean President Lee Jae Myung and Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi played a short duet of popular K-pop songs during Lee’s official visit to Japan, ending his trip on a lively note. Both leaders wore matching jackets and performed on stage. Japanese officials said the idea stemmed from Takaichi’s past as a drummer, the BBC reported.
Takaichi later shared on X that the performance was planned after Lee said last year that he wanted to play the drums. During a visit to Nara, her hometown, Lee presented her with a drum set, and the two leaders exchanged signed drumsticks. The gesture marked a new chapter in symbolic diplomacy, when leaders exchange gifts such as pandas, rare dogs, or even saiga, the Central Asian antelope.
Videos of their performance quickly spread on social media, with users in both countries praising the gesture as a positive sign for relations between South Korea and Japan.
The event came as Lee seeks to strengthen ties with regional partners such as Japan. Recently, he visited China, where he met with President Xi Jinping to discuss trade and the export of South Korean cultural products, which are under an unofficial ban in China.
During Lee’s visit to Japan, the two leaders also agreed to cooperate on regional security and economic issues.
