South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has recently started practicing golf in preparation for future meetings with President-elect Donald Trump.
Mr. Yoon's office confirmed that this was the first time he participated in this sport since 2016. Accordingly, the last time Mr. Yoon went to the golf course was on November 9, last Saturday.
Mr. Yoon said he received advice from people close to Mr. Trump that the two would have “good chemistry.” Experts say this personal relationship could benefit Seoul if Mr. Trump’s “America First” policy returns.
At a press conference on November 7, Mr. Yoon shared that many people close to Mr. Trump have said that he and the President-elect will have a good connection. He also sent congratulations to Mr. Trump by phone after his victory in the US election. In addition, some former officials in the Donald Trump administration and influential Republicans have also offered to help build relations between South Korea and the incoming Trump administration.
Analysts say Yoon could leverage his personal relationship with Trump to advance Seoul's interests, especially as Trump is likely to re-adopt an "America First" foreign policy and unpredictable leadership style in his second term.
South Korea is heavily dependent on trade with the United States, and during Mr Trump's first term the two countries had disagreements over sharing the cost of the roughly 28,500 US troops stationed in South Korea - a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.
Seoul officials are now preparing for major economic changes, while Mr Yoon called for dialogue between the government and industry to prepare for Mr Trump's return.
According to Ramon Pacheco Pardo, an expert on North Korea at King’s College London, Yoon and Trump’s unconventional personalities and approaches could make it easier for them to build a relationship. He also said that Yoon is highly regarded by US policymakers, which would help him regardless of who advises Trump on foreign affairs.
Bruce Klingner, a senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation in Washington, agreed that the two leaders could develop a strong relationship but warned that this might not be enough to protect South Korea from negative impacts.
This expert emphasized that many leaders will try to build friendships like former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe with Mr. Trump, but there is no evidence that personal relationships bring specific benefits to Japan.
