President Lee Jae Myung speaks at the first Ulchi Cabinet Meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
President Lee Jae Myung speaks at the first Ulchi Cabinet Meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday expressed support for Donald Trump's decision to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea, saying he respected the US president's resolve to create conditions for dialogue toward building a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula.

"I have carefully read the recent social media messages and photos posted by President Trump," Lee wrote on X, formerly Twitter. He said he shared Trump's will and efforts to foster a dialogue environment — even through reducing combined exercises and field maneuver training — and paid tribute to that decision.

Lee said the post brought back memories of his first meeting with Trump at the White House about a year ago, when he volunteered to serve as a "pacemaker" and asked Trump to take on the role of "peacemaker" for the Korean Peninsula — the world's only divided nation. "At the G7 and NATO summits, I also had serious discussions with President Trump on restoring peace on the Korean Peninsula and resolving the nuclear issue," he said.

Lee described Trump's latest message as "a great decision reflecting deep deliberation to move beyond hostility and confrontation and build peace on the Korean Peninsula."

Lee said South Korea was fully capable of shouldering its own defense, noting that the country — ranked fifth in global military power — spends on defense an amount equivalent to 1.4 times North Korea's annual GDP and is rapidly increasing defense spending to reach 3.5 percent of GDP as agreed by the two countries. "I fully share President Trump's conviction that South Korea must take responsibility for its own security," he said.

Lee expressed hope that Trump's decision would lead to confidence-building and a resumption of dialogue between the United States and North Korea, ultimately paving the way for a stable peace regime on the peninsula. He added that he would do his utmost as pacemaker to facilitate and contribute to Trump's peacemaking efforts, as he had stated on multiple occasions.

Lee also addressed Trump's claim regarding Iran's denuclearization efforts. Trump had previously asserted that Lee said "No thanks" when asked to join efforts related to Iran's denuclearization.

Lee rebuffed that characterization, saying the South Korean government had on multiple occasions made clear it would actively join the international community, including the United States, in efforts to restore freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz.

"To that end, our government will continue to communicate closely with the US side, as it has done, on various practical ways to contribute within the bounds permissible under South Korean law and fundamental policy," he said.

Lee closed his post by saying he looked forward to meeting Trump again in the United States in the near future.


moone@heraldcorp.com