Trump slams 'purge' in South Korea ahead of Lee summit
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks at the White House in Washington, Aug. 22. Reuters-Yonhap
WASHINGTON — South Korea's presidential office said Monday it will check the situation after U.S. President Donald Trump said there seems to be something like a "purge or revolution" in Korea, as he is set to have a summit with President Lee Jae Myung on the day.
Trump made the remarks in a social media post. It was unclear what he was referring to, but former President Yoon Suk Yeol has been detained over his botched martial law bid in December.
"WHAT IS GOING ON IN SOUTH KOREA? Seems like a Purge or Revolution," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "We can't have that and do business there. I am seeing the new President today at the White House."
Shortly after Trump's post, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung told reporters that the office will check the situation.
Kang said there was a need to verify the remarks by Trump on social media.
During a press availability later, Trump said he heard about recent "vicious" raids on churches by the new South Korean government, when asked to elaborate on his social media post.
"Well, I heard that there were raids on churches over the last few days, very vicious raids on churches by the new government in South Korea, that they even went into a military base and got information," he said.
"They probably shouldn't have done that, but I heard bad things."
He added that he does not know if it's true or not.
"I will be finding out," he said. "As you know, your new president's coming in just a couple of hours. I look forward to meeting him, but we won't stand for that."
Trump's remarks struck a jarring note as Seoul has been striving to use the summit to further strengthen bilateral cooperation on defense, economic security, trade and other key areas, with Washington seeking to "modernize" the bilateral alliance in the face of an increasingly assertive China.
Lee was elected in a snap election in June following a constitutional process to oust Yoon over his short-lived martial law declaration that had brought the Asian nation into a turbulent period of political turmoil.
Some from Trump's "Make America Great Again" movement are known to have an unfavorable view of Lee amid their speculation that the Lee administration could move closer to China despite an intensifying Sino-U.S. rivalry, whereas the former Yoon administration put its foremost priority on relations with the United States.
Lee has been promoting his "pragmatic" diplomatic approach that prioritizes the alliance with the U.S. but leaves open room for South Korea to keep stable ties with China, its crucial partner for trade, tourism and diplomacy for peace on the Korean Peninsula.