4 days ago
Trump speaks with new South Korean President Lee
US President Donald Trump spoke with his new South Korean counterpart, Lee Jae-myung, who just took office this week. He agreed with Lee to work toward completing a swift deal on tariffs that will benefit both sides.
South Korea's presidential office confirmed on Friday that the two leaders held their first phone call, which lasted around 20 minutes.
The office said in a statement that Trump began by offering his congratulations on Lee's election victory. It said Lee responded by reaffirming the importance of their alliance, describing it as the foundation of Seoul's diplomacy.
The office also said Trump invited Lee to visit the US, and the two agreed to hold a summit at the earliest opportunity. However, the discussion veered in other directions. They took time to talk about their golf games and agreed to play a round when they could.
Lee used his swearing-in ceremony on Wednesday to call for a deepening of ties with the US and its partners.
He said, "Based on a strong South Korea-US alliance, we will strengthen trilateral cooperation with the US and Japan while approaching relations with neighboring countries from the perspective of practicality and national interest."
South Korean politics had been in turmoil for six months before Lee took office. It was thrown into disarray when former President Yoon Suk-yeol briefly declared martial law in December.
