Daily Mail Reports on "Starmer's Embarrassing Gaffe"
"Shook Hands with Interpreter Instead of President Lee at Summit"
Reportedly Appeared Confused Before Taking a Photo
It has been reported that British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who attended the Group of Seven (G7) summit held in Canada, experienced an awkward incident during a summit with South Korea, where he mistook a Korean interpreter for President Lee Jae Myung. On the 18th (local time), the British Daily Mail published an article titled "Starmer's Embarrassing Gaffe at the G7 Summit," stating, "Prime Minister Starmer shook hands with the Korean interpreter instead of President Lee during the Korea-UK summit," and "He experienced an embarrassing mishap by mistaking the interpreter for the Korean president."
President Lee Jae Myung shakes hands with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer before the Korea-UK summit at the G7 Summit venue in Canmore, Alberta, Canada, on the 17th (local time). Photo by Yonhap News
At the time, Prime Minister Starmer appeared confused for several seconds after shaking hands with the interpreter and seemed unsure about where to stand for a photo. However, he later congratulated President Lee on his election, saying, "I look forward to working with you, Mr. President. We have already built a strong partnership and hope to further strengthen it."
He particularly stated, "I hope to enhance our cooperation on updating the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between our two countries, as well as on defense and security issues." In response, President Lee said, "I believe there needs to be more progress on revising the FTA between our two countries," and added, "I hope today's summit will serve as a good opportunity to further strengthen the existing cooperative relationship between our two countries." Prime Minister Starmer replied to President Lee's comments, saying, "Good. Thank you," and added, "I would also like to thank you for your cooperation with Ukraine regarding defense and security."
In the subsequent summit, the two leaders shared their assessments of the recent situation on the Korean Peninsula and, according to a press release from the presidential office, agreed to work closely together to ease tensions on the peninsula and resolve the North Korean nuclear issue. In addition, the two leaders expressed concern over the recent deterioration of the situation in the Middle East, agreed on the need for a swift de-escalation of regional tensions, and committed to working together for peace and reconstruction in Ukraine.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Starmer also experienced an awkward situation during a previous meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump. After the summit with Prime Minister Starmer, President Trump signed an executive order related to a trade agreement with the United Kingdom. At that time, President Trump held up the document to show it to the press, but accidentally dropped several pages on the floor.
Prime Minister Starmer jokingly remarked, "A very important document," and personally picked up some of the pages. He later told reporters that he picked them up himself because he was concerned that others trying to help might be stopped by the security team.
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