The new South Korean president, Lee Jae-myung, calls himself a foreign policy “pragmatist”. He says he is driven by South Korea’s national interest, rather than ideology, and has spoken of his desire to improve relations with China and North Korea.

Facing a complex set of thorny challenges at home and abroad, Lee Jae-myung says he will deal with them with “pragmatism.”

In his inauguration speech, Lee Jae-myung, South Korea’s newly elected president, pledged to strengthen the nation’s alliance with the United States while pursuing a pragmatic relationship with China.