Tag: Donald Trump

Trump has executed his usual playbook of making an extreme demand and then settling on what he really wanted and everyone claims he backed down:

 U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday lowered “reciprocal” tariffs on South Korea and other trading partners to 10 percent in what he called a pause that will last for 90 days, while increasing duties on China to 125 percent following China’s retaliatory move.

In a social media post, Trump made the announcement as reciprocal tariffs went into effect on the day, with dozens of countries striving to negotiate deals over new levies. Last week, his administration unveiled 25 percent tariffs on South Korea, 24 percent on Japan and 20 percent on the European Union, to name a few.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It sounds like this really was a good phone call considering the positive spin President Trump has put on it:

U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday he and South Korea’s acting President Han Duck-soo discussed Seoul’s payment for the United States’ “big time” military protection of the Asian ally as they held their first phone call since Trump took office in January.

In a social media post, he said he had a “great” call with Han, during which they touched on a range of issues, including South Korea’s “tremendous and unsustainable” trade surplus with the U.S., the purchase of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) and bilateral shipbuilding cooperation.

Their conversation came four days after South Korea’s Constitutional Court removed President Yoon Suk Yeol from office over his short-lived martial law imposition in December.

“I just had a great call with the Acting President of South Korea. We talked about their tremendous and unsustainable Surplus, Tariffs, Shipbuilding, large scale purchase of U.S. LNG, their joint venture in an Alaska Pipeline, and payment for the big time Military Protection we provide to South Korea,” he wrote on Truth Social.

“They began these Military payments during my first term, Billions of Dollars, but Sleepy Joe Biden, for reasons unknown, terminated the deal. That was a shocker to all! In any event, we have the confines and probability of a great DEAL for both countries.”

Trump added that South Korea’s “top” team is on a plane heading to the U.S. for negotiations.

“Things are looking good,” he said. “We are likewise dealing with many other countries, all of whom want to make a deal with the United States.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but the problem Trump will need to deal with is that if an agreement is reached with the interim government, the new government in 60 days could change it all.

It looks like Trump is signaling at some point there will be a reach out to the Kim regime. However, with the administration tied down trying to negotiate a peace between Ukraine and Russia, the North Korea issue will likely remain on the back burner:

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday expressed his desire to reestablish the relationship that he had with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his first term, boasting that he “got along great” with the reclusive leader and still has a “great” relationship with him.

During a press availability, Trump made the remarks, describing the North Korean leader as a “nuclear power” with “a lot of nuclear weapons,” as his administration is pursuing the goal of the “complete denuclearization” of North Korea.

“Well, I would,” Trump said, responding to a reporter’s question of whether he has a plan to reestablish the relationship he had under his first presidential mandate.

“I had a great relationship with Kim Jong-un (of) North Korea. If I wasn’t elected, if Hillary got in, you would have had a nuclear war with North Korea,” he added, as he sat next to North Atlantic Treaty Organization Secretary General Mark Rutte at the White House for talks.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I think Trump is exagerating that there would have been a nuclear war if Hillary was elected. She more than likely would have continued the Obama era policy of strategic patience which was basically doing nothing with North Korea.

I give Trump credit for doing something different in regards to North Korea during his first term though it didn’t work. His outreach did reduce tensions for two years, but still did not slow down North Korea’s pursuit of nuclear weapons and advanced missile systems to deliver them.

Shouldn’t you had made peace in order to receive a peace prize?:

A wave of controversies has erupted between the two rival parties here following a recommendation on Tuesday by a main opposition lawmaker suggesting that U.S. President Donald Trump be considered a candidate for the Nobel Peace Prize.

According to the party’s senior spokesperson, Jo Seoung-lae, Rep. Park Sun-won of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) recommended Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize for his role in facilitating dialogue between North Korea and the U.S. during former President Moon Jae-in’s administration.

“The recommendation was made on Jan. 30 to the Norwegian Nobel Committee and party leader Lee Jae-myung and senior DPK Rep. Kim Min-seok have been informed about this,” he said.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but if the DPK wants to get into the good graces of Trump recommending him for a Nobel Peace Prize may do it.

Trump has already identified something that many people do not realize about Kim Jong-un, he is not crazy, he is very smart:

As US President Donald Trump has hinted at attempting a fresh summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, South Korea is likely to confront more complicated diplomatic developments concerning US relations with North Korea.

When asked during a Fox News interview that aired Thursday, Trump said he would reach out to Kim again in his second term. “He liked me and I got along with him,” Trump said. “He is not a religious zealot. He happens to be a smart guy.”

Trump’s comment marked the first time he explicitly expressed his willingness to resume talks with Kim since he took office Monday.

Trump’s new overture for bromance diplomacy came at a time when the US is expected to try to resolve the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. The situation in Ukraine is already complicated because North Korea has sent its troops to Russia to help fight Ukraine, according to Seoul’s National Intelligence Service.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

This was probably a pretty fun moment for the USFK troops that got to hear the President speak to them over a video teleconference:

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday held brief video-linked talks with American troops stationed in South Korea and asked them how North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has been doing, as he attended a formal inaugural ball in Washington. (……..)

“How are we doing over there? How’s Kim Jong-un doing?” Trump said, apparently half in jest, while talking to the U.S. Forces Korea personnel based in Camp Humphreys, a sprawling U.S. military base some 65 kilometers south of Seoul. (…….)

In an apparent reference to the North Korean leader, Trump said the troops face “somebody with pretty bad intentions.”

“You would say that, although I developed a pretty good relationship with him, but he’s a tough cookie,” he said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I wonder how many other world leaders are making jokes about the political crisis in South Korea as well?:

U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has jokingly said “everyone calls me chaotic, but look at South Korea,” a news report said Sunday, in an apparent reference to the political turmoil sparked by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s failed martial law bid.

His remarks were reported by U.S. broadcaster CBS based on interviews with a dozen people with knowledge of events at Mar-a-Lago in the weeks between Election Day in November and Inauguration Day, set for Monday.

“Trump cracked jokes — ‘everyone calls me chaotic, but look at South Korea,’ he said one day,” according to CBS.

“He said he’d meet with Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol ‘if they ever stop impeaching him,'” it said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

President Trump has been sworn in and interestingly there has been no provocations from North Korea yet to welcome him:

 New President Donald Trump vowed Monday to stop the United States from being “taken advantage of,” put “America first” and usher in a “golden age of America,” as he was sworn in as the nation’s 47th president. 

During his swearing-in ceremony in the Capitol Rotunda in Washington, Trump, 78, underscored his America First credo as his second four-year term is expected to see a major shift in the U.S.’ approach to alliances, trade and other key issues. Vice President J.D. Vance was also sworn in.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

If the focus of a summit is denuclearization of North Korea it would be a pointless meeting because Kim Jong-un will never agree to getting rid of his nukes. However, negotiating away his ICBM program and stopping proliferation I think are achievable goals:

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un may seek another summit over its nuclear program with US President-elect Donald Trump following his second-term win, but the chances for a meaningful deal appear to be lower, given the North’s enhanced nuclear capabilities, analysts said.

During his first term, Trump hosted the first-ever summit between American and North Korean leaders with Kim in Singapore in 2018, followed by another summit in Hanoi, Vietnam, the next year. But they failed to produce a deal to curb North Korea’s nuclear program.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.