South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung sought US President Donald Trump’s help in engaging with North Korea to resolve issues related to its nuclear program, in a brief exchange on the sidelines of the G7 summit in France on Tuesday, Lee’s office said.
Lee requested that Trump “take the lead in the peaceful resolution of the North Korean issue, just as he resolved the Middle East war,” Lee’s office said in a statement. South Korea was invited to the G7 gathering as a guest nation.
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The exchange took place during a group photo session. Days earlier, Trump posted a photo on his social media account of himself and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un walking together during their 2018 summit in Singapore.
South Korea’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young said the post appears to reflect Trump’s willingness to focus on North Korea when the Iran war comes to an end, calling it a “positive signal.”
Trump held talks with Kim three times during his first presidency, but the engagement failed to persuade the North Korean leader to abandon his nuclear ambitions. Kim has since emerged as a key ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin in his war against Ukraine, accelerating his arms buildup and shunning Seoul’s efforts to improve ties.
{{/usCountry}}Trump held talks with Kim three times during his first presidency, but the engagement failed to persuade the North Korean leader to abandon his nuclear ambitions. Kim has since emerged as a key ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin in his war against Ukraine, accelerating his arms buildup and shunning Seoul’s efforts to improve ties.
{{/usCountry}}On the sidelines of the G7, Lee also held talks with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and said South Korea was ready to help the North American country boost its defense capabilities. South Korea’s Hanwha is competing against Germany’s Thyssenkrupp Marine Systems for a lucrative Canadian submarine contract.