Not Unusual, But a Wait-and-See Approach
Although the leaders of South Korea and the United States held a phone call on June 6 following the inauguration of President Lee Jae Myung, the United States has not released any related statement even a day later. There are differing interpretations regarding this situation.
President Lee and President Donald Trump of the United States spoke by phone for about 20 minutes at 9 a.m. Eastern Time on June 6 (10 p.m. Korean time on June 6). The South Korean presidential office promptly disclosed detailed information about the call. In contrast, neither President Trump nor the White House had issued any official statement as of the afternoon of June 7, more than a day later.
Immediately after the South Korean presidential office's announcement on June 6, Reuters reported, citing a White House official, that President Trump had invited President Lee to visit the United States and that the two leaders planned to meet soon. However, there has been no official statement since then.
Since the launch of his second administration, President Trump has typically announced the outcomes of summit calls himself via his social media platform, Truth Social. However, as not all calls have been made public, it is not unusual that he has not mentioned the call with President Lee.
President Trump has only disclosed the results of calls with world leaders who attract significant global attention, such as President Xi Jinping of China or President Vladimir Putin of Russia, or when there were noteworthy achievements or messages he wished to announce through the call.
For example, after a call with then-acting President and Prime Minister Han Ducksoo on April 8, he revealed on social media that they discussed "payment for the large-scale military protection provided to Korea." This was intended to highlight the issue of increasing South Korea's share of defense costs.
For congratulatory calls marking a leader's inauguration or election, such as the recent South Korea-U.S. summit call, there have been cases where the contents were announced and cases where they were not. For instance, after speaking with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, who took office in mid-March, President Trump immediately shared the results on social media on March 28. However, after a call with newly appointed German Chancellor Friedrich Merz on May 8, he did not issue any statement on social media.
Therefore, some analysts argue that there is little need to attach great significance to the U.S. not announcing the results of the summit call.
There is also a view that the quiet response from the United States is not negative. This is because, in the early stages of the new South Korean government’s formation, if President Trump were to demand rapid negotiations on key issues such as defense cost-sharing or tariffs, it would be difficult for South Korea to respond calmly.
However, some observers believe that since the launch of the Lee Jae Myung administration, the Trump administration has shown a "low-key" or "wait-and-see" stance. The call took place three days after the presidential election, whereas since the 2000s, such calls have usually occurred one to two days after the South Korean election. It is also notable that the White House’s first statement on President Lee’s election included content aimed at checking China’s influence, which is different from previous cases.
Accordingly, it is expected that President Trump’s perception of the Lee Jae Myung administration will become clearer during his first face-to-face meeting with President Lee, which is expected to take place at the Group of Seven (G7) summit in Canada from June 15 to 17.
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