(LEAD) Lee meets with leaders of ruling, opposition parties

▲ President Lee Jae Myung (C, front) poses for a photo with leaders of the ruling Democratic Party and five minor parties during a luncheon meeting at Cheong Wa Dae on Jan. 16, 2026. (Yonhap)

▲ President Lee Jae Myung (Yonhap)

(LEAD) Lee-politics

(LEAD) Lee meets with leaders of ruling, opposition parties

(ATTN: UPDATES with meeting began; CHANGES headline, byline; ADDS photo)

By Kim Eun-jung and Yi Wonju

SEOUL, Jan. 16 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung met with the leaders of ruling and opposition parties on Friday to discuss bipartisan cooperation and pending state affairs, Cheong Wa Dae said.

The luncheon meeting, held at Cheong Wa Dae, brought together the leaders of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) and five minor parties. Jang Dong-hyeok, the leader of the main opposition People Power Party, did not attend the meeting.

On Thursday, Jang launched a hunger strike, demanding the DP accept special probe bills on allegations of bribery involving the Unification Church and separate claims of illicit payments linked to the DP's election nominations.

The five minor parties are the Rebuilding Korea Party, the New Reform Party, the Basic Income Party, the Jinbo Party and the Social Democratic Party.

Details of the conversations were not immediately disclosed, though it was expected that Lee would share the outcomes of his recent visits to China and Japan, exchange views on overall state affairs, and ask for political support for the government's policy efforts.

It marked Lee's third meeting with the party leaders since taking office in June last year, and his first since last September.

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