No Mention of Korea-US Summit Call by the US… 'Low-key' Stance After President Lee's Inauguration

After President Lee Jae-myung’s inauguration, a summit call between the leaders of South Korea and the United States took place, but as the US had not released an official announcement even a day later, attention is being drawn to the reason behind this.

President Lee and US President Donald Trump spoke on the phone for about 20 minutes at 9 a.m. (US Eastern Time) on the 6th—which is 10 p.m. KST on the same day.

Immediately after the call, the South Korean Presidential Office disclosed the content in detail, but as of 8 p.m. local time on the 7th—a full day later—President Trump and the White House had not made any official statement about the call.

Since the beginning of his second administration, President Trump has personally disclosed the outcomes of summit calls through his account on the social media platform Truth Social.

While over 10 posts regarding calls for interest rate cuts, high-level trade negotiations with China, and schedule updates have appeared on his Truth Social account, there has been nothing regarding the call with President Lee.

However, not every matter is made public, so it is not necessarily unusual that he didn’t mention the outcome of the call with President Lee.

For example, President Trump informed the public immediately after a call with Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada, who took office in mid-March, on the 28th of that month, but following a call with the new German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on the 8th of last month, he did not state his position on social media.

Nevertheless, some say that, overall, the Trump administration has shown a 'low-key' or 'wait-and-see' attitude since the launch of the Lee Jae-myung government.

The timing of this call was three days after the presidential election, which is a longer interval compared to the 2000s practice of summit calls taking place one or two days after election day. It is also notable that the White House’s first statement on President Lee’s victory included concerns about Chinese influence.

Although it is possible that President Trump did not attach much significance to this call, intentional withholding of an announcement cannot be ruled out either.

During the leaders’ call, they exchanged views on developing the Korea-US alliance and tariff negotiations. According to the Presidential Office, President Trump congratulated President Lee on his election win, to which President Lee expressed his appreciation. Regarding tariff discussions, both countries agreed to work for a mutually satisfactory agreement as soon as possible.

President Trump extended an invitation to President Lee to visit the US, and President Lee responded by saying, "As special allies, Korea and the US should meet and consult frequently." The two also discussed assassination threats and agreed to play golf together in the future.

Reporter Oh Se-seong, Hankyung.com sesung@hankyung.com