South Korea’s Lee Jae Myung turns charm on during Trump meeting

Hours earlier than South Korean president Lee Jae Myung was resulting from meet US president Donald Trump, a Fact Social publish dropped.

“WHAT IS GOING ON IN SOUTH KOREA?” Trump wrote, pointing to a “Purge or Revolution” – which many noticed as a reference to the prosecution of former president Yoon Suk Yeol for his unsuccessful try and impose martial regulation final December.

However Lee turned on the allure and averted a repeat of what occurred to Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky or South Africa’s Cyril Ramaphosa.

However the assembly was dominated by Trump’s fixed references to North Korea and regardless of Lee’s flattery, didn’t yield a lot by means of easing commerce and defence points. Listed below are three essential takeaways.

Lee’s staff had been nervous about this assembly, and so they had good motive to be: Trump is traditionally cautious of South Korea, regardless of it being a US ally. Up to now, he has accused it of freeloading from the tens of hundreds of US troops which are stationed on the peninsula serving to to defend in opposition to North Korea. He has additionally criticised Seoul’s defence spending and its commerce surplus with the US.

Lee, a left-wing politician, has a fame in Washington that performs to the worst of Trump’s fears. He has been sceptical of the US alliance and mentioned he needed to develop stronger ties with China. He has additionally been painted by some US conservative commentators as being “anti-American”.

Lee’s staff had been nervous he could be subjected to an Oval Workplace dressing down and must defend himself in opposition to proper wing conspiracy theories.

The reality social publish within the hours earlier than the assembly would have given them a scare. Trump’s ominous-sounding message seemed to be referring to the aftermath of South Korea’s martial regulation disaster final December, and the efforts Mr Lee’s authorities and prosecutors are making to analyze the ousted president Yoon Suk Yeol, his spouse, and former members of his authorities.

It’s one thing the far-right in South Korea, and even some within the US, have railed in opposition to.

This was the nightmare situation for South Korean officers – that Mr Lee could be compelled to defend himself in opposition to proper wing conspiracy theories. However when the assembly arrived, Mr Trump raised the difficulty, solely to rapidly brush it off as a possible misunderstanding.

However Lee’s technique of flattery clearly labored. He first marveled on the Oval Workplace’s “brilliant and delightful” new look, then heaped praises the non-public rapport that the US president has constructed with North Korean chief Kim Jong Un.

“The one one that could make progress is you Mr President”, Mr Lee mentioned. “For those who turn out to be the peacemaker, then I’ll help you by being a pacemaker.”

Lee even joked about constructing a Trump Tower in North Korea and enjoying golf there.

If this appears a bit of fawning, this was South Korea’s technique for this high-stakes assembly, which aimed was meant to cowl commerce, the position of US troops in South Korea and the way a lot Seoul spends on its defence.

The primary objective of Lee’s staff was to make it possible for he left the Oval Workplace on Trump’s good facet.

Later, when requested by a reporter about his earlier feedback on South Korean authorities raiding church buildings, Trump mentioned that he had heard about it by way of “intel” however that “did not sound to me like South Korea”.

The “hearsay” was seemingly a “misunderstanding”, Trump mentioned. When Lee mentioned that authorities have been investigating the declare, Trump mentioned he was certain that they’d “work it out”.

It seemed like Lee had prevented a Zelensky second on the White Home – and his staff can breathe a sigh of aid.

It would look unusual to see President Trump sitting subsequent to the South Korean chief, of their first ever assembly, speaking about how properly he acquired on with Kim Jong Un, the South’s sworn enemy, and the way a lot he is trying ahead to assembly him once more.

However that is truly one of many few areas of widespread floor these two leaders have.

South Korea’s comparatively new president Lee Jae Myung is taking a brand new method to North Korea than that of his predecessor, who was accused of antagonising Kim Jong Un.

It was, in reality, Lee who initiated the dialog about Kim Jong Un, praising President Trump for the non-public rapport he has constructed with the North Korean chief, and asking him to behave as a “peacemaker” on the Korean peninsula.

Lee needs to speak to Kim, to determine peaceable relations between the North and South, however he is aware of that Trump has a much better likelihood of constructing this occur than he does.

Trump, who met Kim 3 times in his first time period, typically brings up the dictator. Trump famously mentioned the pair “fell in love” whereas exchanging letters.

“I spent a variety of free time with him, speaking about issues that we most likely aren’t supposed to speak about,” Trump mentioned on Monday. “I get together with him very well.”

“I stay up for assembly with Kim Jong Un within the acceptable future,” Trump added.

The query is whether or not Kim Jong Un will need to speak to both of them.

North Korea has repeatedly rejected Lee’s makes an attempt to speak, and ignored makes an attempt by the US to restart dialogue. It hasn’t closed the door on speaking to Trump, however has steered it must be on very completely different phrases than earlier than – on the premise that North Korea wouldn’t quit its nuclear weapons.

That is now one thing Seoul and Washington should attempt to navigate.

Excessive on the agenda for Lee’s White Home go to was commerce and defence. However no concrete agreements have been made for both.

Seoul had managed to barter the US tariffs on South Korean items down to fifteen%, after Trump threatened charges as excessive as 25%. This got here after Seoul agreed to speculate $350bn (£264.1bn) within the US – $150bn of which is able to go into serving to the US construct ships.

South Korea has a thriving shipbuilding business, constructing extra vessels than every other nation on this planet apart from China, at a time when US shipbuilding and its navy is in decline.

And simply hours after Lee’s White Home assembly, Korean Air announced that it would buy 103 Boeing planes.

However the tariffs on South Korean items won’t be lowered anytime quickly. “I believe now we have a deal completed” on commerce, Trump informed reporters after the assembly, with out offering extra particulars. “That they had some issues with it, however we caught to our weapons.”

The assembly additionally did little to maneuver different thornier problems with bilateral ties.

On Monday, Trump sidestepped a query about withdrawing US troops from South Korea – an concept that the White Home has reportedly toyed with as Trump repeatedly accused South Korea of making the most of US safety and never paying sufficient for defence.

Additionally on Monday, Trump floated the thought of letting the US personal the piece of land housing Osan Air Base, to the south of Seoul, collectively operated by the US and South Korea.

However some assurance that Lee acquired from Trump, at the very least, was the financial alliance between their international locations. The US and South Korea “want one another” for commerce, Trump informed reporters in Lee’s presence.

“We love what they do, we love their product, we love their ships, we love a variety of the issues they make,” he mentioned. In the meantime South Korea wants oil and gasoline, and the US can be buying and selling these with them, he added.