U.S. President Donald Trump met in the White House with the new President of South Korea Lee Jae Myung on Aug. 25, with a major focus of the discussion being Trump’s interest in re-establishing political contact with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un.
Lee became President earlier this year after the impeachment of former conservative President Yoon Suk Yeol. He is in the Democratic Party, and is considered a leftist who is close to China and supports better relations with the North, although he is now supporting better relations with the U.S. as well.
Trump opened the joint press conference by saying he was interested in buying ships from South Korea (one of the world’s leading ship-builders), while complaining that the U.S. had completely deserted its ship-building industry (except for submarines), and asked South Korea to help the U.S. to rebuild that industry.
Lee heaped praise on Trump for “making America great again” (pointing to the stock market as evidence!) and as a peace maker, adding that Korea was “the last divided country” and that Trump could help make for peaceful relations in Korea. He said he looked forward to Trump visiting North Korea again, and that perhaps he could build a Trump Tower in the North!
