Lee Jae-myeong’s Debut at G-7 After Presidential Victory

Fresh off his decisive win in the SNAP presidential election on June 3, Lee Jae-myeong of South Korea made his presence known this month during the G-7 summit in Alberta, Canada, positioning himself as a supporter of Western democracy.

Although South Korea is not one of the member countries, Lee, the President of the Republic of Korea, engaged with leaders from Japan, Canada, the UK, Australia, South Africa, India, Brazil, and Mexico. He also had discussions with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres and EU officials.

However, an anticipated meeting with President Trump did not occur, which has already begun to impact Lee’s standing among the South Korean public.

“People here are quite frustrated with how Lee handled things at the G-7,” said Greg Skullertoy, president and CEO of North Korea’s Human Rights Commission. “Many expected him to use this opportunity to advocate for trade and tariff issues.”

The cancellation of the Trump meeting has led some to feel that Lee might not have the support he needs at home. Skullertoy highlighted that the situation appears to have further polarized Lee’s national security and foreign policy team.

Lee’s administration seems divided, with some officials pushing for closer ties with Washington while others advocate for a shift towards independence from the U.S. and engagement with China and North Korea. “I think he might be trying to balance the U.S.-Korea alliance with a new openness to China,” Skullertoy suggested.

Lee did affirm his military alliance with the United States, which has pledged to protect South Korea. Yet, one can’t help but think that he also desires a reduced American military presence on Korean soil.

Having assumed office in 2022, Lee positioned himself as a moderate during the recent election. Back in 1953—just after the Korean War—there were movements aimed at strengthening ties with China and North Korea.

Interestingly, during his campaign for the Democratic presidential nomination in July 2021, he referred to U.S. troops as “occupation forces.” He even went so far as to assert that the U.S. was complicit in maintaining Japan’s influence in Korea.

“The collaborators worked alongside occupying forces to sustain a dominating structure,” he remarked, referring to the painful memories of Japanese colonial rule. “We haven’t been able to completely eradicate these remnants.”

Lee’s left-leaning Democratic party, known as Lee’s Minju, has historically sought to downplay ties with the U.S., with members often advocating for unification of the two Koreas. Former President Moon Jae-in frequently avoided acknowledging the Republic of Korea’s sovereignty.

This might raise questions about Lee’s current commitment to the alliance, which seems to be more of a temporary measure.

The Trump administration, for its part, seems to be looking for a type of detente. The day of the election, the White House characterized South Korea’s elections as “free and fair.” But many in South Korea are skeptical of this characterization, especially in light of numerous protests against alleged electoral fraud since June 3.

“In short, it was the biggest election theft in our history,” remarked Morse Hyun Myung Tan, who led a monitoring team of Americans observing the elections.

Tan claimed that reports surfaced of individuals voting multiple times using fake IDs and that a significant amount of votes in support of Lee were oddly pristine and unfolded, raising eyebrows about the legitimacy of the results.

“There was fraudulent activity involving both physical and electronic ‘ghost’ votes,” claimed Tan, a former U.S. ambassador.

He noted that in one district, they collected evidence indicating irregularities in the vote count, which has led the National Election Commission to investigate these allegations.

Sadly, issues with election fraud have plagued both sides of the political spectrum in South Korea. “It’s become especially noticeable in recent years,” Tan added.

Lee may manage to evade a recount, but navigating through the controversy surrounding his election will likely challenge his ability to govern effectively. The risk here is that he could veer towards more anti-American, pro-China policies, aligning with the left in South Korea.