Lee, Trump regret missed chance for meeting with N. Korean leader

President Lee Jae Myung shakes hands with U.S. President Donald Trump at Gyeongju National Museum in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday, after conferring the Grand Order of Mugunghwa, South Korea’s highest national honor, for Trump's efforts for peace on the Korean Peninsula. Joint Press Corps

GYEONGJU, North Gyeongsang Province — President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump voiced regret that their hoped-for meeting between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un did not materialize, underscoring their continued interest in dialogue with Pyongyang.

The comment came during a summit between Lee and Trump at Gyeongju National Museum, Wednesday, on the sidelines of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) events being held in the North Gyeongsang provincial city.

"Although Kim Jong-un has yet to fully accept President Trump's genuine intentions and the potential meeting fell through, the very fact that you reached out and expressed your willingness to meet him at any time helps to create a warm current of peace on the Korean Peninsula," Lee told Trump during the talks.

"For now, Kim has not fully understood or embraced your true intentions. But I do believe your effort this time would be another seed for the great peace on the peninsula."

President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump meet for summit talks at Gyeongju National Museum in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Joint Press Corps

In response, Trump reiterated that he sees a positive and peaceful solution for the two Koreas.

"I will say this, that the Korean Peninsula, and I know you are officially at war, but we will see what we can do to get that all straightened out," Trump said.

"I'll be working on this very hard with you, with your team, with a lot of other people. See if we can do something that makes sense. I know Kim Jong-un very well. We get along very well. We really weren't able to work out timing. We'll work very hard with Kim Jong-un and with everybody on getting things straightened out because that makes sense," the U.S. president continued. "May take a little time, [and] you have to have a little patience, but I feel absolutely certain that it will."

Trump has repeatedly expressed his willingness to meet Kim during his South Korea visit, but Pyongyang has not made any response.

President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump stand next to each other during an official welcoming ceremony for Trump at Gyeongju National Museum in Gyeongju, Wednesday. Joint Press Corps

Lee also noted that while South Korea remains technically at war, the nation has achieved stability and development thanks to the support of the U.S. and the international community. He stressed that the Korea-U.S. relationship should continue to evolve into a modernized and future-oriented comprehensive strategic alliance.

“South Korea is now recognized as having the world’s fifth-strongest military, so we are not in a particularly weak position,” Lee said. “Nevertheless, we will work to further increase our defense spending to help reduce the United States’ defense burden.”

He also expressed hope that Trump would make a decision allowing South Korea to receive fuel for nuclear-powered submarines, clarifying that the goal is not to build submarines armed with nuclear weapons, but to improve the capabilities of conventional submarines.

President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump walk to the summit venue at Gyeongju National Museum in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Joint Press Corps

Under a nuclear energy pact between the two nations, Korea is allowed very limited spent fuel reprocessing and uranium enrichment, only with U.S. consent.

“Our diesel-powered submarines are limited in tracking North Korean and Chinese submarines,” he said, emphasizing that South Korea's own technology to conduct defensive operations in the seas surrounding the Korean Peninsula would significantly ease the U.S. military’s burden.

Trump agreed with the idea of strengthening bilateral cooperation in the shipbuilding industry, noting that shipbuilding has become a strategic necessity. He expressed hope that South Korea and the U.S. could lead the global shipbuilding sector together.

Trump also expressed his appreciation for a gold crown and national order presented to him by the Korean president.

"What you've done is amazing. First of all, the welcome and the beautiful honor you bestowed on me as the only American president. That's really a great tribute to our country, not to me. It's a great tribute to our country," Trump told Lee.

President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump walk to the summit venue at Gyeongju National Museum in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, Wednesday. Joint Press Corps

Trump had arrived at Gimhae International Airport in Busan around 11:40 a.m. earlier in the day, where he was greeted with a formal welcoming ceremony that included an honor guard inspection and a 21-gun salute. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun and Korean Ambassador to the United States Kang Kyung-wha were among the officials who welcomed the U.S. president. From the airport, Trump boarded his official helicopter, Marine One, for the roughly 80-kilometer flight to Gyeongju.

The presidential office noted that the meeting marks reciprocal visits between the two leaders within 147 days of the start of the Lee administration, a record-short time span. Trump also became the first foreign head of state to make two state visits to Korea.