Trump's initial warning to South Korea's Lee turns into warm welcome after flattery

The cordial display showed how world leaders are taking notes from previous meetings between Trump and heads of state, who've largely chosen the route of praise and adulation rather than confrontation as they seek favorable trade terms and continued military aid from Washington. It was one of the first big foreign policy tests for Lee, who took over a country in a state of political turmoil since its former leader, Yoon Suk Yeol, was ousted from office after imposing martial law.

Lee, elected in June, began by praising one of Trump's pet projects: presidential interior design.

“I heard that you recently redecorated the Oval Office, and I would like to say that it looks very bright and beautiful,” Lee said through an interpreter. “It has the dignity of America, and it symbolizes the new future and prosperity of America.”

He noted that the Dow Jones index has reached record highs (although Lee made sure to add the caveat that “it went down a bit”) and asked Trump, who has been on a mission to receive the Nobel Peace Prize, to reunify the two Koreas and even perhaps see the construction of a Trump Tower in North Korea accompanied by a round of golf. Lee also agreed with Trump's assertion that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un would not have continued to enhance his nuclear capabilities the last few years had Trump remained in office.

Noting a “renaissance” that is taking place, Lee said “I believe you are the only leader who has made such accomplishments.”

The tone was a far cry from Trump's confrontational social media post earlier Monday. He later elaborated that he was referring to raids on churches and on a U.S. military base by the new South Korean government, which they “probably shouldn't have done."

“I heard bad things,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday morning. “I don't know if it's true or not. I'll be finding out.”

Trump did not identify specific raids. But earlier this month, South Korean police conducted a raid on a church led by a conservative activist pastor who authorities allege is connected to a pro-Yoon protest in January that turned violent, according to Yonhap news agency. A special prosecutor's team that is investigating corruption allegations against Yoon's wife , former first lady Kim Keon Hee, also raided the facilities of the Unification Church after allegations that one of its officials gave Kim luxury goods.

Meanwhile, Osan Air Base, which is jointly operated by the United States and South Korea, was also the target of a raid last month by investigators looking into how Yoon's activation of martial law transpired, according to the Chosun Ilbo newspaper. South Korean officials have insisted the raid was in the areas controlled by Seoul.

Asked about his assertions by a reporter in front of Lee, Trump declined to confront the South Korean president and instead said the two will discuss it later.

“It didn't sound to me like South Korea,” Trump said.

Lee explained that the special prosecutor was tapped by the country's National Assembly to investigate the actions of Yoon, who Lee said staged a “self-coup.”

At that point, Trump interjected, “Is his name Deranged Jack Smith, by any chance?” He was referring to the special prosecutor who led two criminal cases against Trump before the Republican president was reelected to a second term.

Yoon, who was elected to a five-year term in 2022, was considered more ideologically aligned with Trump and had even taken up golfing again after the U.S. president was reelected last November to try to forge a bond with him. Lee led the South Korean parliament's efforts to overturn Yoon's martial law decree while impeaching him. The nation's Constitutional Court formally dismissed Yoon in April.

The first in-person meeting between Trump and Lee could further flesh out details of a July trade deal between the two countries that has Seoul investing hundreds of billions of dollars in the U.S. The agreement set tariffs on South Korean goods at 15% after Trump threatened rates as high as 25%.

Seoul has one of the largest trade surpluses among Washington’s NATO and Indo-Pacific allies, and countries where the U.S. holds a trade deficit has drawn particular ire from Trump, who wants to eliminate such trade imbalances.

Trump also said Monday that he’d like to scrap the U.S. lease with South Korea that covers Osan Air Base and instead get ownership of the land.

Ahead of his visit to Washington, Lee traveled to Tokyo for his first bilateral visit as president in a hugely symbolic trip for the two nations that hold longstanding historical wounds. The summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba was interpreted by analysts as a way to show unity and potential leverage as Japan and South Korea face new challenges from the Trump administration.

Elected in June, Lee was a former child laborer with an arm deformity who rose his way through South Korea’s political ranks to lead the liberal Democratic Party and win the presidency after multiple attempts.

Lee faced an assassination attempt in January 2024, when he was stabbed in the neck by a man saying he wanted Lee’s autograph and later told investigators that he intended to kill the politician.

Lee arrived in the U.S. on Sunday and will leave Tuesday. He headlined a dinner Sunday evening with roughly 200 local Korean Americans in downtown Washington on Sunday night.

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Associated Press writer Will Weissert in Washington contributed to this report.