I am an editorial writer at The Korea Times, focusing on foreign policy, North Korea and domestic politics. My key areas of interest include North Korea, foreign interference in elections, election integrity, cyberattacks and human rights. Prior to joining the Editorial Board, I served as both Politics Desk editor and Culture Desk editor. During my career, I have reported on the Presidential Office under the Lee Myung-bak administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Assembly.
'Trump for Nobel Prize': Can the initiative offer relief to Lee Jae-myung amid double whammy?
Rep. Park Sun-won of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) was caught on camera sharing a handwritten note with Rep. Kim Min-seok and DPK Chairman Lee Jae-myung, both not pictured, at the National Assembly main hall on Monday. Yonhap
By Kang Hyun-kyung
DPK chairman, facing stagnant support and diplomatic concerns abroad, seeks breakthrough with pro-US measures
South Korea’s largest political party has filed paperwork recommending that the Norwegian Nobel Committee consider nominating U.S. President Donald Trump for this year’s Nobel Peace Prize.
This news broke on Monday when Rep. Park Sun-won was caught on camera sharing a handwritten note with two prominent members of the main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) — Chairman Lee Jae-myung and floor leader Kim Min-seok — at the National Assembly main hall. The note appears to have been written during or after Park's luncheon on Feb. 3 with Joseph Y. Yun, the charge d’affaires at the U.S. Embassy in Seoul. It read: “A letter of recommendation for Trump was submitted to the Norwegian committee. This was notified to the U.S. side and is said to be reported sooner or later to the White House.”
Rep. Park confirmed the news, explaining that he recommended Trump to the Nobel committee in recognition of the U.S. president's role as a peacemaker on the Korean Peninsula. The DPK noted that, despite challenges, Trump had held summit talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during his first term. “We recently recommended President Trump to the Nobel committee and hope that he can continue his peace-building efforts during his second term,” Rep. Jo Seoung-lae told reporters.
The DPK’s support for nominating Trump came as a surprise to many, given the party's typical foreign policy stance. The DPK has frequently criticized President Yoon Suk Yeol’s foreign policy, particularly his focus on strengthening South Korea’s alliance with the U.S. and improving ties with Japan to promote the South Korea-U.S.-Japan trilateral partnership. The DPK has even argued that Yoon’s U.S.-centric policy has harmed South Korea's relations with China, Russia and North Korea, increasing geopolitical risks rather than diminishing them.
The DPK's push to nominate Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize has raised questions, as observers struggle to understand the party's motivations behind seeking favor with Washington.
A source familiar with the matter said the Nobel Prize initiative stems from an internal power struggle. "Within the DPK, there is a kind of competition happening, with Chairman Lee's loyalists trying to win his favor by presenting various ideas that could advance his presidential bid," the source said on condition of anonymity. "This is particularly relevant because an early presidential election may be held, and if it is, Lee could potentially win. I believe the Nobel initiative is one of these ideas."
Three DPK lawmakers are seen on their backs on Monday. From left are Reps. Kim Min-seok, Park Sun-won and DPK Chairman Lee Jae-myung. Yonhap
Political scientists have suggested that the initiative could help Lee appeal to centrist voters.
Kang Woo-jin, a political science professor at Kyungpook National University, suggested that the push to nominate Trump for the Nobel Peace Prize is more of a campaign strategy than a shift in the DPK's or Lee's foreign policy stance.
“I think this is part of the plan to help Rep. Lee become the next president,” Kang said, noting that the DPK chairman appears to be preparing for a possible early presidential election.
Whether such an election will take place remains uncertain. It depends on the outcome of the ongoing impeachment trial against the president. If the Constitutional Court rules against Yoon, his presidency will be cut short, and an early election will be held within two months. However, if the court rules in his favor, Yoon will return to office and serve out his term.
“Public opinion surveys show that Chairman Lee is the frontrunner and the most favored presidential candidate, even though he has not yet been officially nominated by his party,” Kang said. “While Lee has considerable leadership experience as both the mayor of Seongnam and governor of Gyeonggi Province, he lacks significant experience in foreign policy. Through the Nobel Prize initiative for Trump, I believe he is trying to send a message that he is presidential material, capable of handling complex foreign policy issues through personal diplomacy.”
Hahm Sung-deuk, dean and Naun professor of political science and law at Kyonggi University, offered a similar perspective.
“Winning the election, if it occurs, will depend on Chairman Lee’s ability to appeal to a broad base of centrist voters. He’s working to define himself as a pragmatic leader who can broaden his support beyond just hardcore DPK followers,” Hahm said. “Outside of the country, people are wary of Lee’s foreign policy. This external perception of Lee negatively impacts how centrist voters view him."
It seems that Chairman Lee is under pressure to soften his image to win their support.
Think tank experts and foreign policy observers abroad have closely examined Lee’s foreign policy after Yoon’s brief martial law declaration on Dec. 3 led to prolonged political turmoil, raising the possibility of an early presidential election.
Unlike Yoon, who is widely regarded as an undisputed pro-U.S. politician, Lee has cultivated a reputation for balancing South Korea's relations with the U.S. and China, which has raised concerns, particularly among U.S. policymakers.
In a report titled “South Korea Political Crisis: Martial Law and Impeachment,” last updated on Dec. 31, the U.S. Congressional Research Service (CRS) compared the foreign policy visions of Yoon and Lee, suggesting that Yoon is an easier partner for the U.S. to work with.
The CRS noted that Yoon was “more willing than prior ROK leaders to publicly criticize China’s actions,” while Lee has questioned this approach. The report further highlighted Yoon’s efforts to improve relations with Japan and expand Korea-U.S.-Japan cooperation, a cornerstone of his foreign policy, including compromises on historical issues with Japan, which Lee has called “shameful.”
Most favored and most disliked candidate
In addition to overseas concerns about his foreign policy, Lee faces challenges with stagnant approval ratings. Although consistently ranked as the frontrunner in surveys, his approval remains stuck in the mid-30s and has never surpassed 40 percent. In hypothetical two-way matchups, some polls show Lee in a tight race within the margin of error against potential PPP candidates, including Labor Minister Kim Moon-soo and Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon.
A more worrying trend is that Lee leads in two extreme categories: he is both the most favored and, at the same time, the most disliked presidential candidate. In a survey conducted by polling agency Gongjung in January, when respondents were asked to name the candidate they would never vote for, Lee topped the list with 42.1 percent. He was followed by Daegu Mayor Hong Joon-pyo (16.8 percent), Seoul Mayor Oh (9.9 percent) and former PPP leader Han Dong-hoon (9.2 percent).
Lee’s two major challenges — his unfavorable overseas reputation and stagnant approval ratings — have prompted him and his party to devise a set of innovative, if not unprecedented, strategies to reshape his image.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a press conference with Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, not pictured, in the East Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., Tuesday. Yonhap
On Jan. 21, Rep. Kim Byung-joo spearheaded the drafting and submission of a resolution aimed at strengthening the Korea-U.S. alliance, which was co-signed by about 80 other DPK lawmakers.
The non-binding measure emphasized that the Korea-U.S. alliance has been the cornerstone of Korea's democracy, economic growth and peace-building efforts on the Korean Peninsula. Rep. Kim, a four-star general-turned-politician, stated that he and other lawmakers who supported the resolution hoped the alliance could be further solidified during Trump’s second term.
The resolution was introduced on the occasion of Trump’s inauguration, but it is unusual for DPK members to take such an initiative. One thing is clear: the DPK aimed to send a message that the party, and Lee in particular, is willing to cooperate with the U.S. and is not anti-American.
In addition, Lee has sought to appeal to centrist voters by prioritizing the economy. He has shown flexibility on the 52-hour workweek rule for the semiconductor sector, a stance that has discomforted some of his party’s lawmakers, whose major constituents are labor unionists.
This raises the question: Will Lee’s approach help him expand his support base domestically while boosting his approval abroad?
Kang noted that such strategies come with trade-offs. “Politicians want to broaden their support base and take measures that appeal to centrist voters. But they must remember that this could alienate some of their traditional supporters. That’s the price they have to pay,” he said.