Summit Talks with Leaders of Nine Countries Including Japan, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Brazil at the G7 Summit
First Summit with Japan, Reaffirming Commitment to Restoring Shuttle Diplomacy
Korea-US Summit Canceled Due to Escalating Middle East Tensions... Another Attempt Planned at NATO Summit
President Lee Expected to Focus on Domestic Issues for the Time Being: Cabinet Appointments, Supplementary Budget, and Special Prosecutors
President Lee Jaemyung, who made his debut on the international diplomatic stage under the banner of "Democratic Korea Has Returned," returned to Korea via Seoul Airport in the early morning of June 19 after completing a three-day, one-night schedule attending the Group of Seven (G7) summit.
President Lee held consecutive bilateral meetings with the leaders of nine countries, including a summit with Japan, as well as Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, and South Africa. He also participated in the expanded session of the G7 summit, where he presented Korea's policy vision as a country contributing to energy supply chain cooperation, the convergence of artificial intelligence (AI) and energy, and technological innovation, among other topics, in a tightly packed schedule.
Before returning to Korea, President Lee posted on Facebook, stating, "This G7 summit and the multiple bilateral meetings signal a new leap forward for Korean diplomacy," and added, "I promise to overcome the decline in national prestige, diplomatic isolation, and loss of trust experienced in recent years, and to restore our status in the international community."
During this trip, President Lee achieved a summit meeting with Japanese Prime Minister Ishiba Shigeru just 14 days after taking office, reaffirming the commitment to Korea-US-Japan trilateral cooperation and the restoration of shuttle diplomacy. However, a summit with US President Donald Trump, which had drawn attention due to the "tariff negotiations" issue, was canceled after President Trump had to urgently return home because of the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran. In response, President Lee plans to make another attempt at a bilateral meeting to address pending issues at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit, which will be held in The Hague, Netherlands, on June 24-25.
Having made his debut on the summit diplomacy stage, President Lee is expected to address the numerous domestic issues awaiting him before the NATO summit. As this is the early stage of the new administration, it is highly likely that the cabinet formation process will accelerate. Given the new experiment of the public recommendation system, the key question is whether appointments will meet public expectations. Some observers predict that most ministerial and vice-ministerial appointments will be finalized soon.
Another issue requiring President Lee's attention is the intensifying attacks from the opposition regarding Prime Minister nominee Kim Minseok. On June 16 (local time), during a press conference aboard the presidential plane en route to Canada for the G7 summit, President Lee responded to a question regarding the personal issues raised about Prime Minister nominee Kim and National Policy Planning Committee Chairperson Lee Hanju, stating, "These are matters that can be sufficiently explained during the confirmation hearing process."
As part of his commitment to prioritize people's livelihoods and the economy, President Lee must also focus on issues such as the operation of the Emergency Economic Monitoring Task Force (TF), launched as his first executive order, and the execution of the second supplementary budget, which is estimated to exceed 20 trillion won. Since the second supplementary budget is scheduled to be submitted to the Cabinet meeting on June 19, securing the cooperation of the opposition during the subsequent National Assembly review process will be an immediate challenge.
The presidential office is also expected to closely monitor the progress of investigations related to the "three major special prosecutors"?the rebellion, Kim Keonhee, and Chae Sangbyeong cases. The three special prosecutor teams are accelerating preparations, such as forming investigation teams and setting up offices, ahead of the start of investigations in early July. The Kim Keonhee special prosecutor team has signaled a comprehensive investigation by being the first to appoint special prosecutors.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
