Foreign Pool Report #1 Background on South Korea President Lee Jae-myung‘s Visit

Hello, 안녕하세요 (annyeonghaseyo) ,

I’m glad to be your foreign pooler for South Korean President Lee Jae-myung’s visit to the White House.

President Lee embarked on a six-day, two-nation trip to Japan and the U.S. on Aug. 21. He arrived at Joint Base Andrews on Aug. 24, accompanied by South Korean First Lady Kim Hye-kyung. The South Korean Embassy has confirmed to your pooler that U.S. First Lady Melania Trump will not be present at the White House during this visit.

Today marks President Lee’s first meeting with President Trump, 82 days after taking office on June 4. A South Korean official told your pooler that President Lee views this trip as the first major step in advancing his vision of “pragmatic diplomacy.” This two-leg trip to Tokyo and Washington represents his first set of bilateral engagements abroad and is designed to lay the foundation for his foreign policy agenda.

On the U.S. side, a White House official said that President Trump looks forward to hosting South Korean President Lee Jae-myung at the White House. The two leaders are expected to discuss North Korea, defense posture, trade barriers, maritime security, American shipbuilding, energy dominance, and more.

White House Schedule:

• 12:00 PM — The President greets the President of the Republic of Korea
• 12:15 PM — The President participates in a bilateral meeting with the President of the Republic of Korea
• 12:45 PM — The President participates in a bilateral lunch with the President of the Republic of Korea

After the White House talks, Lee will attend a business roundtable with top corporate executives from both countries. He was accompanied by a business delegation including Samsung Electronics Executive Chairman Lee Jae-yong, Hyundai Motor Group Executive Chair Euisun Chung and LG Group Chairman Koo Kwang-mo.

On Aug. 25 at 6:15 p.m. ET, President Lee Jae-myung will deliver remarks at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) Statesmen’s Forum. Watch live: https://www.csis.org/events/statesmens-forum-his-excellency-lee-jae-myung-president-republic-korea

The event is followed by a dinner with leading U.S. opinion makers.

On Aug. 26, President Lee will pay his respects at the Arlington National Cemetery for a wreath-laying ceremony.In the afternoon, he will depart Washington D.C. for Philadelphia where Lee will visit the Seo Jae-pil Memorial Hall, honoring the Korean independence movement leader. Capping off his U.S. visit, President Lee’s final schedule will be at the Philly Shipyard, highlighting the shipbuilding sector as a symbol of Korea–U.S. cooperation and in light of MASGA ( Make American Shipbuilding Great Again ). He will also take part in the christening of the ship “State of Main” built by Korea’s own Hanwha Ocean for the U.S. Maritime Administration.

Key Topics and Background of the Summit

Top South Korean officials have already arrived in DC last week for a final push to shape the agenda of this summit. Notably, South Korea Foreign Minister Cho Hyun skipped President Lee's visit to Japan to meet Secretary of State Marco Rubio last Friday.

According to the South Korean Embassy in the U.S., President Lee specifically aims to:

• Stabilize economic and trade relations with the U.S., ensuring a steady and mutually beneficial partnership.
• Modernize the 73-year Korea–U.S. security alliance, adapting it to contemporary regional and global challenges.
• Pioneer new areas of cooperation between the two countries, with particular emphasis on industries such as shipbuilding, where both nations can pursue innovative and strategic collaboration.

On the U.S. side, officials have highlighted priorities such as:

• Greater collective burden-sharing
• Revitalizing American manufacturing
• Restoring fairness and reciprocity in the trade relationship

South Korean media interpret these priorities as pointing to complex talks on “strategic flexibility” for U.S. forces in Korea—a sensitive issue given Seoul’s management of ties with China.

Seoul is reportedly seeking to revise the bilateral nuclear energy agreement to allow fuel reprocessing, a step Washington has long resisted over non-proliferation concerns.

Why this summit matters now: According to Victor Cha, CSIS Korea Chair, this is a pivotal meeting for South Korea—not only because the United States is its key ally, but because of Seoul’s domestic political crisis last December (the declaration of martial law, subsequent impeachment, and snap elections) left the new government roughly six months behind other capitals in engaging the Trump administration’s fast-moving agenda since January.

Since President Lee’s election in June, the two leaders have not met. An attempted side meeting at the G7 in Canada fell through when President Trump departed early due to the Iran operation. The NATO leaders’ summit in The Hague was the next window, but President Lee chose not to attend. From there, the relationship became dominated by the reciprocal tariff deadline. Throughout July, South Korea’s national security and trade teams shuttled to Washington to seek a deal. As Victor Cha notes, ROK officials even tracked down U.S. counterparts in Europe to continue negotiations after official meetings and dinners.

Tariffs and Shipbuilding

South Korea and the United States reached a trade agreement on July 30 that set a 15% IEEPA baseline tariff and a 15% tariff on automobiles and auto parts—down from the 25% reciprocal rate that would have taken effect on Aug. 1.

In return, Seoul has pledged up to $350 billion in U.S. investments. Secretary Lutnick noted on X that South Korea also agreed to purchase $100 billion in liquefied natural gas (LNG) and other U.S. energy products over the next 3.5 years. The White House says that when President Lee Jae-myung visits, he and President Trump will announce major new U.S. investments by South Korean companies.

In a statement, President Lee explained that the $350 billion fund—part of the overall package—will serve as a foundation for bilateral strategic-industry cooperation, helping Korean firms expand in U.S. markets where Korea is strong: shipbuilding, semiconductors, secondary batteries, biotechnology and energy. Of the pledged investment, $150 billion will go toward Seoul's shipbuilding cooperation initiative.

In an op-ed, Lee Joon-ho, chargé d’affaires at the Embassy of the Republic of Korea in the U.S., highlighted fast-deepening shipbuilding ties. Korea now accounts for 30% of global shipbuilding (second to China) and built 197 ships last year. One example is Hanwha Ocean’s acquisition of Philly Shipyard. Since the takeover, operations have stabilized, workers are being retrained, and smart manufacturing is being introduced.

In 2024 goods trade, U.S. exports to Korea were $65.6B; imports $131.6B; the U.S. goods deficit $66.0B.

In a recent foreign-policy speech, President Lee described the U.S.–ROK negotiations as a “wave” in the storm, warning of continued turbulence and calling for sustained investment in semiconductors, AI, and clean energy to buffer against global volatility.

U.S.–ROK Alliance Modernization

Forged in war and codified by the 1953 Mutual Defense Treaty, the alliance anchors deterrence on the Korean Peninsula and stability across the Indo-Pacific. The treaty commits both sides to consult when either’s security is threatened and enables a sustained U.S. force presence in Korea.

According to the State Department, approximately 28,500 U.S. military personnel are stationed in South Korea, working closely with the ROK military and United Nations Command member states to deter and defend against North Korea and to uphold the Korean Armistice Agreement.

This year, the United States and South Korea kicked off Ulchi Freedom Shield ’25 on Aug. 18, running through Aug. 28. The exercise involves about 21,000 troops in total, including about 18,000 from the ROK.

Under the current Special Measures Agreement (SMA), Seoul contributes over $1 billion annually in host-nation support. South Korea also funded about 90% of the cost of building Camp Humphreys, the largest U.S. military base overseas.

President Trump has asked the U.S. ally to increase its defense spending to 5% of GDP and to expand cost-sharing; South Korea currently spends about 3.5% of GDP on defense.

US-ROK-Japan Trilateral

President Lee Jae Myung met Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba in Tokyo on the 23rd right before flying to Washington D.C. The two leaders announced the first joint statement by their countries in 17 years.

It was President Lee's second in-person meeting with Ishiba. Lee called his visit to Tokyo an opportunity to solidify the foundation for "future-oriented" ties as this year marks the 60th anniversary of the normalization of their diplomatic relations.

In a joint written interview, President Lee told the Japanese press that Korea-Japan relations simultaneously contain aspects of confrontation, cooperation and mutual tolerance. What's important is to identify as many mutually beneficial elements as possible. There is no need to abandon the beneficial aspects because of certain negative ones, according to the interview.

Katrin Fraser Katz, an adjunct fellow with the CSIS Korea Chair, said President Lee has effectively returned to a two-track approach: separating historical grievances stemming from Japan’s colonization of Korea from a future-oriented agenda of bilateral cooperation with Japan on the economy, shared security threats, and people-to-people ties.

During his meeting with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Lee said, “I believe developing and strengthening Japan–South Korea relations benefits not only our two countries but the region as a whole. It is very important to deepen cooperation among Japan, South Korea, and the United States.”

New Approach to North Korea

A week before this summit, South Korea Unification Ministry announced the South Korean government would shift its approach toward North Korea from the "Unification Doctrine" of the previous administration to rebuild trust across the border.

On the President's liberation Day address on August 15th, President Lee made three commitments: to respect the North Korean regime, no unification through subjugating the North, and no hostile acts.

Speaking at a parliamentary committee on foreign affairs and unification, South Korean Unification Minister Chung Dong-young called for trust-building measures through reviving military communication, and the 2018 deal on de-escalating border tensions with the North. He cautioned that dialogue may take time to materialize. At the same session, South Korean Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said Lee’s dovish approach will be anchored in close coordination with the United States. Pursuing inter-Korean dialogue in parallel with U.S.–North Korea talks, Seoul and Washington aim to reaffirm a unified stance and create conditions for renewed negotiations. Seoul envisions a phased denuclearization process—freeze, then reduce, and ultimately dismantle North Korea’s nuclear program.

However, Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, quickly dismissed this, saying the North won’t see the South as a diplomatic partner while U.S.–ROK drills continue. That signals no immediate opening from the North.

Bio

Lee Jae-myung is a controversial political figure known for his remarkable personal journey. Born into a poor family , he worked as a child laborer in a factory and suffered a workplace injury leaving him with a lifelong disability in his left arm.

He later earned a law degree on scholarship and became a human‑rights lawyer, entering politics in 2005. He served as Mayor of Seongnam(2010–2018) and Governor of Gyeonggi Province(2018–2021). He won a seat in the National Assembly in June 2022 and was elected leader of the Democratic Party of Korea in August 2022.

He first ran for president in 2022 as the candidate of the Democratic Party but narrowly lost . In 2025, he ran again and was elected president after a closely contested race.

In January 2024, Lee survived a knife attack during a public event and underwent surgery for a neck injury. Politically aligned with the progressive camp, Lee's leadership and policy positions have sparked both support and debate across South Korean society.

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Bingru Wang

Senior Correspondent

Hong Kong Phoenix Satellite Television

Washington Bureau