President Park Geun-hye speaks on the phone with her Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Wednesday. /Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae

President Park Geun-hye called Xi Jinping on Wednesday to congratulate him on his inauguration as China's new president.

Their conversation lasted 20 minutes. "Telephone conversations between leaders normally last 10 to 15 minutes, but theirs took longer because they exchanged their own personal stories," a Cheong Wa Dae official claimed.

Park asked Xi for cooperation to achieve the joint goals of peace, stability and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and to try and persuade North Korea to come to the dialogue table.

The official quoted Xi as saying, "Let's keep trying together to persuade the North, even if it's difficult."

Xi said peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula "are directly beneficial both to the South Koreans and the Chinese people," according to the official.

They invited each other to visit.