Tag: Donald Trump

It is going to be very interesting to see if this Board of Peace can actually accomplish the rebuilding of Gaza. It appears the funding will be there for reconstruction, but the real question is going to be who is going to disarm Hamas and provide security? You can’t rebuild anything until security is reestablished in Gaza:

 U.S. President Donald Trump mentioned South Korea among the countries that will join a fundraiser to support the reconstruction of the war-torn Gaza Strip, as he convened the first meeting of a new U.S.-led international peace organization in Washington on Thursday.

Trump referred to South Korea, the Philippines and other countries, which he said would contribute to the reconstruction efforts for the Palestinian enclave, during the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace, which was launched last month to promote peace efforts around the world.

“Japan has just committed to an aid fundraiser, which will be a very big one. It’s already successful. We know some of the numbers that are being talked about, which will be attended by other nations in the region, including South Korea, the Philippines, Singapore and others,” he said.

“China is going to be involved, and I think Russia is going to be involved,” he added.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It will be interesting to see if South Korea and Japan join the Board of Peace:

DAVOS, Switzerland — Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, seen by some as a rival ‍to the United Nations, has caught officials at some of the countries invited off guard, with several saying they felt compelled to sign up rather than risk the U.S. president’s wrath.

Reuters canvassed 16 world leaders, including politicians and delegates from Arab nations, Latin American countries and Europe at the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland, with the response fairly consistent.

Officials from several regions said privately that joining Trump’s proposed board felt less like a choice and more an inevitability, as governments weighed the risks of staying out against the uncertainty of signing on.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but if Korea or Japan really want to get on Trump’s good side they should offer to host the board in their country.

This doesn’t make me feel any better because is Xi telegraphing he plans to invade Taiwan after Trump is out of office?:

President Donald Trump says that Chinese President Xi Jinping has given him assurances that Beijing would take no action toward its long-stated goal of unifying Taiwan with mainland China while the Republican leader is in office. Trump said that the long-contentious issue of Taiwan did not come up in his talks with Xi on Thursday in South Korea that largely focused on U.S.-China trade tensions.

But the U.S. leader expressed certainty that China would not take action on Taiwan, while he’s in office. “He has openly said, and his people have openly said at meetings, ‘We would never do anything while President Trump is president,’ because they know the consequences,” Trump said in an excerpt of an interview with the CBS’ program “60 Minutes” that aired Sunday.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

It looks like President Trump and Prime Minister Takaichi hit it off really well during their summit yesterday:

Weapons sales and trade in critical minerals were on the agenda when President Donald Trump met new Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi in the Japanese capital Tuesday morning. Trump arrived Monday after a stop in Malaysia for the Association of Southeast Asian Nations summit. He and Takaichi met in an ornate conference room at Akasaka Palace, a state guest house, alongside top leaders from their governments.

Just outside were parked gleaming new American and Japanese pickup trucks. The Japanese government is considering the purchase of a fleet of Ford F-150s. “She has good taste,” Trump, referring to Takaichi, told reporters on Air Force One during the flight to Asia. “That’s a hot truck.” Trump and Takaichi met elsewhere in the palace to sign a new agreement strengthening their alliance and a framework for securing a U.S. supply of critical minerals and rare earths — key materials for the defense and technology industries.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

With North Korea getting all their needs currently met by the Russians there really isn’t any urgency for the Kim regime to engage with the U.S. Additionaly Kim Jong-un has to consider what Putin would think if he sees him meeting with Trump when the war in Ukraine is still ongoing:

U.S. President Donald Trump said he is willing to extend his stay in South Korea in order to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, but Pyongyang has offered no response, maintaining its customary silence ahead of this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province.

Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One during his flight from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Tokyo on Monday, Trump said, “If he [Kim] wants to meet, I’d love to,” adding that he “could go over there” while in South Korea.

He emphasized that he and Kim had a “very good relationship” and that extending the trip would be “easy if needed.” It was the latest in a series of gestures that began before his departure for Asia last week.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Japan’s new Prime Minister definitely has an opportunity to impress President Trump this week since she is protege of his good friend Shinzo Abe who was assassinated three years ago:

U.S. President Donald Trump arrived in Tokyo on Monday, meeting with Emperor Naruhito in the evening ahead of a bilateral summit the following day with new Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi that will focus on trade, investment and defense spending.

Trump arrived at Tokyo’s Haneda Airport a day after announcing a handful of deals with Southeast Asian nations during a regional summit in Malaysia, part of a whirlwind tour of Asia.

Greeted on the tarmac by U.S. Ambassador to Japan George Glass and Japan’s top government spokesman, Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara, the U.S. president’s arrival came as some 18,000 police officershave been mobilized, following a string of high-profile attacks at home and abroad targeting political figures.

While a summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping later this week in South Korea has been the focus of headlines, his meeting with Takaichi, who took office less than a week ago, will be a crucial test of her diplomatic chops.

Takaichi, a protege of slain former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, will be seeking to build a solid relationship with Trump as she looks to navigate increasing pressure from the U.S. on trade and defense issues.

Speaking aboard Air Force One while en route to Tokyo on Monday, Trump said he looked forward to meeting Takaichi.

“I hear phenomenal things,” he said. “She was a great ally and friend of Shinzo Abe, who was my friend. … He was one of my best. … And I know they were very close, and I think philosophically they were close, which is good. It’s going to be very good. That really helps Japan and the United States.”

Shortly after touching down at sunset, Trump took a helicopter to central Tokyo for his meeting with Emperor Naruhito. The U.S. president was the first foreign leader to meet the emperor — whose role is purely symbolic — after he ascended to the throne in 2019.

Japan Times

You can read more at the link.

It makes sense that both these leaders would want to make official visits with President Lee since they will both be in Gyeongju for the APEC summit:

U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping are both likely to pay state visits to South Korea during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering later this month, diplomatic sources said Thursday. 

Seoul is in talks with Washington and Beijing over the arrangements for the highly anticipated trips by the two leaders and is fine-tuning details to host both with a state visit, the sources said.

A state visit is the highest form of diplomatic visit by a foreign head of state, during which the host country extends the utmost ceremonial protocol, including an elaborate official welcome with military honors and a state banquet.

If realized, their visits would take place in Gyeongju, the host city for APEC in southeastern South Korea, rather than Seoul, possibly in a simplified manner in terms of the protocol, considering the schedules coinciding with the multilateral gathering, the sources said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It seems Trump is fighting more to protect California’s film industry than there own governor who’s tax policies have caused studios to flee the state for filming:

US President Donald Trump announced Sunday via Truth Social that he would impose a 100 percent tariff on all movies produced outside the United States, making his second such declaration in five months.

The statement came without an implementation timeline or enforcement mechanism.

Without providing evidence, Trump claimed that foreign countries were “stealing” American film production through tax incentives. He cited California as being “particularly hard hit.”

The announcement left more questions than answers.

It remains unclear how such a tariff would work in practice. Would it apply to streaming content or just theatrical releases? How would authorities calculate the levy on intellectual property rather than physical goods? Sunday’s announcement also provided no definition of what constitutes a foreign-made film.

Korea Herald

You can read more at the link.

Right now with the Kim regime having all their needs met through their partnership with the Russians, there is really no urgency to pursue peace talks with the ROK or the US:

South Korea’s president has asked President Donald Trump to become “a peacemaker” and use his leadership to get North Korea to talks to reduce military tensions on the Korean Peninsula, the South’s top diplomat said Friday. Trump “welcomed” the request from President Lee Jae Myung and “he expressed his willingness to be engaged with North Korea again,” Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said in an interview with the Associated Press. There was no immediate word from the White House. Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un met three times as North Korea was building a nuclear weapons stockpile, which Kim views as key to the country’s security and his continued rule of the northeast Asian nation.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

It would be interesting to learn what part of the trade deal that President Lee was trying to renegotiate:

U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that Seoul and Washington agreed to keep last month’s bilateral trade deal unchanged though there was a “problem,” as he held summit talks with South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Washington the previous day.

Trump made the remarks during a Cabinet meeting, while touting a series of agreements that his administration has reached with countries to reduce America’s trade deficits and boost federal coffers.

“I heard there was a problem with South Korea, but we met yesterday, and they are done. We didn’t do it. We just kept the same deal. He honored the deal,” he said.

“They wanted to see if … well, I don’t even want to say it, but they wanted to see if they could do something. But they honored the deal, which is nice,” he added.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.