(MENAFN- Live Mint) Chinese President Xi Jinping made a rare public display of humour on Saturday, surprising observers with a lighthearted exchange about 'spying' as he gifted two Chinese cellphones to South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.

The moment, captured on camera, occurred during a diplomatic gift exchange on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in the South Korean city of Gyoengju.

Xi's visit to South Korea, which was his first since 2014, comes after years of strained relations between the two countries, spanning issues from trade to cultural disputes.

What did Xi say to Lee?

President Xi presented Korean President Lee with several gifts, including two high-end smartphones - one for him and one for his wife. The phones were manufactured by the Chinese technology giant Xiaomi, with Korean-made displays, a spokesman for Xi said as the two leaders inspected them with news cameras rolling, the New York Times reported.

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Upon inspecting one of the phones, still in its box, President Lee admired it and then asked about the device's security.“Is the communication line secured?” President Lee light-heartedly asked, prompting laughter from the delegations.

President Xi, who is rarely seen speaking spontaneously in public, responded with a grin and pointed at the devices, stating,“You can check if there's a back door (for spying),” referring to a pre-installed software that can be accessed by third parties to monitor a device. This remark drew laughter and applause from President Lee.

Threat from Chinese tech

The exchange took place against the backdrop of long-standing concerns about Chinese technology and espionage. The brand Xiaomi was once blacklisted by the United States before it successfully contested the decision in court to reverse the ban, Mint reported earlier.

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In September, some Chinese hackers were accused of leading a cyber-espionage campaign against US technology companies and legal firms, stealing national security secrets often while remaining undetected, Alphabet Inc.'s Google was quoted as saying by Bloomberg. The attackers targeted big American technology developers by stealing source code for enterprise technologies as well as spying on the mailboxes of specific technical individuals.

Technology is not the only tool China has allegedly used for espionage. According to a recent report by The Times, China has also been using“sex warfare” tactics to seduce and spy on professionals in Silicon Valley.

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