Lee seeks a tee time with Trump: Golf diplomacy returns in a new era

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Lee seeks a tee time with Trump: Golf diplomacy returns in a new era

Published: 12 Jun. 2025, 00:03

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Cha Se-hyeon

The author is an editorial writer at the JoongAng Ilbo.

President Lee Jae-myung’s first week in office has been marked by a flurry of diplomacy, with phone calls to U.S. President Donald Trump, Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Among these, his conversation with Trump drew particular attention — not only for their discussion of shared experiences as targets of political attacks, but also for their exchange on golf skills and a mutual agreement to play a round together in the near future.

U.S. President Donald Trump rides a golf cart as Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe drives while they play golf at Mobara Country Club in Mobara, Chiba prefecture, Japan, in this photo released by Japan's Cabinet Public Relations Office via Kyodo May 26, 2019.[KYODO/YONHAP]

This nod to "personal diplomacy" aligns with Trump’s well-known preference for cultivating informal bonds with world leaders. In this regard, Lee’s outreach could prove to be a smart opening shot.

Trump’s original and most trusted international “golf buddy” was the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe. Shortly after Trump’s election victory in 2016, Abe flew to New York to meet him at Trump Tower, bringing with him a set of gold-plated Honma golf clubs valued at approximately 500,000 yen ($3,400). According to Abe’s 2024 memoir, one of the goals of that meeting was to schedule a golf game.

That game materialized in February 2017 following their first summit in Washington. Trump invited Abe to join him aboard Air Force One to fly to Florida, where they played golf near Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate. Abe later wrote that his opening tee shot in that round was one of the most nerve-wracking moments of his life. Though he lost to Trump with a score of 91, he described the day as his most memorable round of golf.

U.S. President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe wave on the way to the course to play golf at Mobara Country Club in Mobara, Chiba Prefecture, east of Tokyo, Japan May 26, 2019. [REUTERS/YONHAP]

A North Korean missile launch on the second day of their Mar-a-Lago visit unexpectedly served to solidify the relationship. While Kim Jong-un likely intended to disrupt the U.S.-Japan summit, the event ended up fostering trust between the two leaders as they managed the situation together. From then on, they called each other by their first names — “Donald” and “Shinzo.” Trump’s aides reportedly even turned to Abe when they needed help persuading the U.S. president. Abe is said to have played a key role in dissuading Trump from pulling U.S. troops out of Korea ahead of the 2018 North Korea–U.S. summit in Singapore.

Abe’s recollections offer a vivid picture of their relationship. “When we spoke on the phone, Trump would talk for an hour, sometimes an hour and a half. The main agenda would be over in 15 minutes, and the rest would be mostly about golf or criticisms of other world leaders. Often, I had to steer the conversation back to the main topic.”

Still, the relationship came at a price. Abe had to accept many of Trump’s economic demands, including large-scale investments by Toyota in the United States and increased purchases of U.S. corn. He also endured harsh criticism in the foreign press, including in the New York Times, which accused him of indulging Trump with sycophantic diplomacy. But Abe dismissed these criticisms, saying that it was the Japanese prime minister’s duty to maintain strong ties with the country’s most important ally. “My efforts helped prevent Japan from becoming a target of Trump’s erratic behavior,” he wrote, hinting that golf diplomacy, while effective, also required a great deal of patience and strategic calculation.

Abe’s approach is generally viewed as successful in defending Japan’s national interest during Trump’s first term.

In Trump’s second term, only one foreign leader — Finnish President Alexander Stubb — has played golf with him so far, during a meeting in March. Since then, Stubb has emerged as a sought-after figure in diplomatic circles. Numerous leaders, including German Chancellor Friedrich Merz during his recent White House visit, have reportedly attempted to arrange golf outings with Trump, hoping to replicate Abe’s success. None have succeeded thus far.

Left: Newly elected President Lee Jae-myung. Right: U.S. President Donald Trump. [YONHAP]

Now President Lee appears to be stepping up to the tee. If a golf round with Trump materializes during or after Lee’s first official visit to the United States, it could mark the start of a pragmatic diplomatic strategy for Korea under the Trump 2.0 administration. Abe offered a lesson worth noting: “The foundation of diplomacy is realism. Diplomacy based on ideology attracts no partners. Every country is engaged in a fierce competition to secure its national interest. Clinging to rigid thinking only leads a nation to decline.”

As Lee’s new administration charts its foreign policy course, that advice may prove timely.

One footnote to this history: Abe may have taken inspiration from former Korean President Lee Myung-bak. In 2008, Lee became the first Korean leader to visit Camp David, where he personally drove U.S. President George W. Bush around the retreat in a golf cart. While they didn’t have time to play a full round during the official visit, the two leaders later played golf together in a private capacity after leaving office. Notably, Lee Myung-bak’s administration was also characterized by pragmatic, interest-driven diplomacy.

Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.