[Various Aspects of the Korea-US Summit]
[Asia Economy Reporter Ki-min Lee] On the 22nd, U.S. President Joe Biden concluded his 3-day, 2-night visit to South Korea and departed for Japan. President Biden's visit held significance as it marked the first Korea-U.S. summit just 11 days after President Yoon Seok-yeol's inauguration. Beyond the development of the Korea-U.S. relationship into a comprehensive strategic alliance, the visit left various afterstories including a visit to a semiconductor factory, support from First Lady Kim Geon-hee, and a phone call between President Biden and former President Moon Jae-in.
◆ Biden’s First Stop in Korea: Semiconductor Factory = First, President Biden attracted attention by visiting Samsung Electronics’ Pyeongtaek semiconductor campus. The Samsung Electronics Pyeongtaek campus was the first meeting place of President Yoon and President Biden, and since it was the first schedule of a foreign head of state’s visit to Korea, political and industrial circles responded with surprise and welcome. Since the campus broke ground in May 2015, this was the first time a foreign head of state visited. Notably, Presidents Yoon and Biden were guided by Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong and personally toured P1, which produces memory semiconductors, and P3, where foundry production lines are being built, at the world’s largest campus (2.89 million square meters, equivalent to about 400 soccer fields), discussing issues related to semiconductor manufacturing.
The Presidential Office explained that President Biden’s visit to the Pyeongtaek campus symbolized the Korea-U.S. alliance evolving from a military alliance to a higher-level economic and comprehensive strategic alliance based on a technological alliance. Through this summit, the two countries agreed to strengthen cooperation and coordination in key fields of the Fourth Industrial Revolution such as semiconductors, batteries, and AI. After touring the factory, President Yoon said in a joint speech, “I hope the Korea-U.S. relationship will be reborn as an economic security alliance based on advanced technology and supply chain cooperation.” President Biden responded by acknowledging Korea’s semiconductor industry status and said, “We must accelerate efforts with allied countries that share our values to enhance supply chain resilience.”
◆ First Lady Kim Geon-hee’s Support Also a Topic… Biden Calls Her “Beautiful” = An anecdote involving First Lady Kim Geon-hee, wife of President Yoon, also became a topic of interest. After the Korea-U.S. summit and joint press conference the previous day, President Biden attended an official dinner held at the National Museum of Korea. Before the dinner, when meeting First Lady Kim, President Biden reportedly joked to President Yoon, “There’s a saying in the U.S. that you and I are ‘married up’ men,” humorously using an American expression that elevates the wife above the husband to praise Mrs. Kim. The Presidential Office explained, “Usually, men use this expression to humble themselves while elevating their wives, meaning humorously that they married a woman far superior to themselves.”
When Mrs. Kim said, “I look forward to seeing you again soon,” President Biden reportedly replied, “I hope to see you when you come to the U.S.” At the dinner, President Biden also praised Mrs. Kim to President Yoon, calling her “beautiful.” However, since President Biden did not bring his wife, First Lady Jill Biden, on this visit, Mrs. Kim did not attend the dinner due to diplomatic protocol.
Additionally, the Presidential Office reported that Mrs. Kim advised President Yoon on his shoes during the Korea-U.S. summit the previous day. President Yoon usually prefers flat shoes due to plantar fasciitis and wore comfortable, flat shoes when he first met President Biden on the 20th and toured Samsung Electronics’ Pyeongtaek semiconductor campus.
However, since the Korea-U.S. summit was a special event, Mrs. Kim advised that it would be better to wear formal shoes, so President Yoon took out the shoes he wore at their 2012 wedding from his shoe rack. During a private conversation, President Biden reportedly remarked upon seeing President Yoon’s shoes, “The president’s shoes are very clean. I should have polished my shoes more.”
◆ Biden Confirms Friendship in Phone Call with Former President Moon Jae-in = President Biden also reaffirmed his friendship with former President Moon Jae-in. Moon’s side, represented by Yoon Gun-young, a member of the Democratic Party, released a press statement the previous day stating, “Former President Moon had a phone call with President Biden for about 10 minutes starting at 6:52 p.m. from his residence in Yangsan.” According to Representative Yoon, former President Moon welcomed President Biden’s first visit to Korea and said, “I regretted not being able to say farewell in person after leaving office, so I am grateful we could talk on the phone.” President Biden responded by calling former President Moon a “good friend” and said, “I have fond memories of our first summit at the White House a year ago, where we laid a historic foundation for strengthening the Korea-U.S. alliance.”
Choi Jong-geon, former First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs who was present during the call, evaluated the conversation as reflecting the achievements of last year’s Korea-U.S. summit during former President Moon’s visit to the U.S. He said, “This is the first time in our diplomatic history that a sitting U.S. president called a former Korean president during a visit to Korea. This will be a very meaningful precedent.”
◆ “Guaranteeing Opportunities for Women” · “Hello, Period” … Remarks by Both Presidents = At the joint press conference following the Korea-U.S. summit, President Yoon’s remarks on guaranteeing opportunities for women drew attention. Initially, the White House and the Presidential Office set rules allowing one question per reporter: U.S. reporters could ask President Biden, and Korean reporters could ask President Yoon.
However, a Washington Post (WP) reporter accompanying the U.S. delegation asked President Yoon, “Currently, the Korean cabinet has more men than women. During the presidential campaign, you said you would strive for gender equality. What can you do to promote women’s representation in a country like Korea, and what plans do you have to achieve gender equality?”
President Yoon replied, “In the public sector, for example, among cabinet ministers, women have not risen to those positions much. This is probably because fair opportunities for women have only recently begun to be actively guaranteed. Therefore, I plan to guarantee these opportunities more actively for women.”
Meanwhile, on the 22nd, after meeting Hyundai Motor Group Chairman Chung Eui-sun at the Grand Hyatt Seoul, U.S. President Joe Biden responded coldly to a CNN reporter’s question about any message for Kim Jong-un, General Secretary of the Workers’ Party of Korea, saying, “Hello... period.”
Throughout his visit, President Biden maintained a confident attitude regarding the possibility of North Korean provocations. At the joint press conference the previous day, when asked about the possibility of a North Korean nuclear test, President Biden said, “We are prepared for whatever North Korea does,” and added, “If that question means how we will respond to their actions, I am not worried because we have been considering it.”
◆ Unfortunate Incident Also Occurred = To prepare for the Korea-U.S. summit, a 30-year-old American security officer A from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, who arrived in Korea before President Biden, assaulted a Korean civilian in front of the Grand Hyatt Hotel in the early morning of the 19th. Police responded to a report of “a foreign man causing a disturbance while intoxicated.” Investigations revealed that A was intoxicated at the time. The individual was immediately repatriated to the U.S., making it unclear whether domestic legal punishment will be applied.
However, the Yongsan Police Station, which investigated the case, stated, “The suspect’s investigation has been completed, and even if the suspect is not in the country, investigation procedures can proceed under domestic law.” When asked about the progress of the investigation by domestic authorities, a Presidential Office official avoided a direct answer, saying, “We will check and then respond.” U.S. authorities are reportedly investigating the possibility of drug use based on the suspect’s behavior during police questioning.
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