South Korean President Yun Seok-Yeol's office confirmed to reporters on Monday that Yun has started practicing golf in preparation for a potential match against the next US president, Donald Trump.
of Korea JoongAng IlboCiting Yun's office, reported that the South Korean leader was once an avid golfer, but had not played in eight years when he resumed practice after the Nov. 5 U.S. presidential election.
President-elect Trump is known for his love of golf for decades. own Over a dozen golf courses around the world. He famously played golf with other world leaders during his first term as president, and developed a close relationship with the late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe through multiple rounds of golf in the United States and Japan.
Golf was also an issue in June's debate between President Trump and outgoing President Joe Biden. Trump raised the issue when asked about his advanced age.
President Trump said, “I've only won two club championships, let alone seniors, I've won two regular club championships.'' “For that you have to be very smart and be able to hit the ball a long way. And I do that. He doesn't do that. He can't hit the ball 50 yards out. I can’t.”
Mr. Biden challenged Mr. Trump to play golf, but he did not accept the offer. Democrats found Biden's debate performance so poor that they immediately replaced him on the ballot with Vice President Kamala Harris.
Junan During his time as a prosecutor, Yun was known as an avid golfer, but his pastime was eventually replaced by the hard work of campaigning and the presidency, according to Monday's report. Conservatives won the fierce race for the Blue House, South Korea's presidential palace in 2022.
According to the Blue House, this is the first time in eight years since 2016 that Yoon resumed playing golf. Junan reported. “He reportedly began practicing after receiving advice to prepare for an interaction with the next U.S. president.”
The United States and South Korea have maintained close ties for decades, and both countries are still technically involved in the Korean War. The Korean War began in 1950, and although an armistice was signed in 1953, a complete peace treaty was not reached. The country and communist dictatorship North Korea regularly threaten to use illegal nuclear weapons to bomb South Korea and the United States.
Trump's relationship with South Korea is complicated by the fact that during his first term as president, the Blue House was occupied by Moon Jae-in, a far-leftist who promotes a policy of appeasement with communist dictator Kim Jong-un. It became. Mr. Moon's successor, Mr. Yoon, has adopted a very different approach, going so far as to threaten to develop nuclear weapons in South Korea to protect the country from North Korean attack. Yun was friendly but not particularly close to outgoing President Joe Biden. Mr. Biden strengthened Washington's defense posture against North Korea only after Mr. Yun proposed building its own nuclear weapons.
Mr. Yoon's Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yeol said Reporters said Tuesday that the South Korean government is keen to cooperate with the incoming Trump administration.
“President-elect Trump's policy direction, which emphasizes expanding the role of allies and contributing to national security, is consistent with our vision of a global central nation that fulfills roles and responsibilities commensurate with its national power and status,” Cho said. He explained.
He further stated, “President Trump's emphasis on a free and open Indo-Pacific order and alliance are largely consistent with the foreign policy of the Yun Seok-Yue administration.'' “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs would like to further strengthen cooperation with the incoming second Trump administration through careful policy coordination, based on these common points in policy.''
Cho said he knows “many people are concerned” about what the Trump administration's foreign policy will be, but that South Korea believes “the Korea-U.S. alliance will remain strong and strengthened.” He said he believed it.
Yun met with Trump on Thursday as one of the first world leaders to receive a call from the president-elect following Tuesday's victory. Yun told reporters that he used this time to congratulate President Trump and asked him to meet in person as soon as possible. He also noted that during Biden's tenure, North Korea has become a much more formidable and escalating threat to South Korea and the free world in general.
“When I told him that, they [North Korea] They sent 7,000 waste balloons across the border, jammed GPS systems, and recklessly launched intercontinental ballistic missiles. [intercontinental ballistic missiles] and IRBM [intermediate-range ballistic missiles]he [Trump] “I can't believe it,” Yoon said, according to a South Korean left-wing newspaper. Hankyoreh. “We agreed to meet soon to share as much information and discuss countermeasures.”
Kim Tae-hyo, Mr. Yoon's chief national security adviser, emphasized in a separate press conference how eager Mr. Yoon is to meet with President Trump.
“Because there is a strong need to meet face-to-face to discuss these issues in detail, President Yoon and President-elect Trump have agreed to set a date, time, and location for a meeting soon,'' Kim said.
What is expected of Mr. Yun? trip This month it will head to Peru and Brazil before leaving South Korea on Thursday. Peru will host this year's Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit, and Brazil will host the Group of 20 (G20) summit. Yin officials said this week that they were “in close contact” with Trump's transition team about a potential meeting, but also said they may be planning a meeting with Biden.
