Lee to face high-stakes test of his diplomatic skills in first Trump summit

President Lee Jae Myung is set to hold a high-stakes first summit with U.S. President Donald Trump in Washington on August 25 — the culmination of months of tariff negotiations and a crucial moment to set the direction of the bilateral alliance.

Lee will embark on a two-country, six-day trip on August 23, which will first take him to Japan for a bilateral summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, before heading to the United States on August 24. His second overseas trip since taking office in early June will be a test bed for his ability to navigate his pragmatic diplomacy to secure the best trade opportunities possible while safeguarding security amid a volatile geopolitical situation.

This comes as Washington has pushed for a modernization of the bilateral alliance, which could include an array of issues, including the size and role of U.S. troops in Korea, a demand for Korea to contribute more in defense spending, renegotiation of the defense burden-sharing deal and the transfer of wartime operational control, or Opcon.

At the same time, Lee is expected to seek Tokyo and Washington’s support in his vision for inter-Korean rapprochement as his administration takes steps to reduce border tensions, such as suspending propaganda broadcasts.

In an interview with Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun published on August 21 ahead of his Tokyo trip, Lee revealed for the first time his three-step road map for North Korean denuclearization.

Lee stressed that the goal is for the denuclearization of the entire Korean Peninsula.
On August 23, Lee will attend a luncheon with members of the Korean community in Tokyo and later hold a summit with Ishiba in Tokyo, followed by a dinner event. On August 24, Lee is scheduled to meet with members of the Japanese Diet.

Lee will depart for the United States later on August 24 and hold his first summit with Trump at the White House on August 25. He will also meet with business and academic leaders in the United States. On August 26, Lee is scheduled to travel to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to visit Hanwha Philly Shipyard, owned by Korean shipbuilder Hanwha Ocean.

Lee will be flanked by a business delegation joined by the heads of Korea’s top four conglomerates in his trip to the United States, which comes as Korea committed to invest $350 billion in the United States in return for a trade deal in late July. This deal set tariffs on Korean exports to the United States at 15 percent, lower than the expected 25 percent.
Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung and LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo will join Lee, according to industry sources. The business delegation will also include CJ Group Chairman Lee Jae-hyun and executives of other companies, including Hanwha Group, HD Hyundai, Hanjin and Doosan Enerbility.

Korea is expected to present a comprehensive package deal covering semiconductors, renewable batteries, shipbuilding, automobiles, nuclear power plants, electricity, biotechnology, energy and minerals to woo Trump, who favors a give-and-take approach. The trip is especially expected to highlight Korea’s $150 billion shipbuilding cooperation initiative, the “Make American Shipbuilding Great Again” (MASGA) project.

Seoul also faces hurdles amid a revelation that the state-run Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) and Korea Electric Power Corporation (Kepco) agreed to provide U.S. energy firm Westinghouse with procurements and high royalties after recently finalizing a nuclear power deal with the Czech Republic.

There is keen interest in the possibility of nuclear energy cooperation between the two countries amid reports that KHNP and Westinghouse have been discussing forming a joint venture to boost the U.S. atomic energy industry.

Diplomatic sources indicated on August 21 that there is a possibility that South Korea will seek to revise its civil nuclear energy agreement with the United States for bilateral cooperation on nuclear energy during the summit to ease restrictions on producing and reprocessing spent nuclear fuel.

In preparation for the summit, Korean ministers are heading to the United States, including Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan.

Minister Kim is scheduled to meet with U.S. government officials and coordinate agenda items for the summit, according to his ministry, which could include discussions on cooperation in key industries like shipbuilding and nuclear energy.

Minister Cho departed for the United States on August 21, earlier than expected.

There is also interest to see if former Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha, who has recently been nominated as the new ambassador to the United States, will accompany Lee.

“In diplomacy, we must prioritize the interests of the Korean people and an enduring nation, rather than my personal position or the temporary standing of the current administration,” Lee said in a meeting with senior secretaries later on August 21 as he spoke on his upcoming trips. “We will continue to seek practical solutions for peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula.”

“With the international political landscape and trade order being restructured, there are so many pressing issues to address,” Lee said. “Although this is a truly challenging environment, I will do my best to build public trust, prioritize national interests and implement a mutually beneficial foreign and security policy.”

BY SARAH KIM [kim.sarah@joongang.co.kr]