<img alt="On the afternoon of April 18, 2008 (local time), then-President Lee Myung-bak arrived at Camp David, the official vacation home of the U.S. President in Maryland, north of Washington, D.C., and drove a golf cart with President George W. Bush sitting next to him.” class=”thumb_g_article” data-org-src=”https://t1.daumcdn.net/news/202411/13/fnnewsi/20241113234345550mexn.jpg” data-org-width=”800″ dmcf-mid=”9wswXNf5pg” dmcf-mtype=”image” height=”auto” src=”https://img2.daumcdn.net/thumb/R658x0.q70/?fname=https://t1.daumcdn.net/news/202411/13/fnnewsi/20241113234345550mexn.jpg” width=”658″/>
On the afternoon of April 18, 2008 (local time), then-President Lee Myung-bak arrived at Camp David, the official vacation home of the U.S. President in Maryland, north of Washington, D.C., and drove a golf cart with President George W. Bush sitting next to him.
[파이낸셜뉴스] While a golf meeting is being held between President Yoon Seok-yeol and U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, it is pointed out that the opposition party’s offensive over President Yoon’s golf practice is contrary to past cases.
According to the President’s Office on the 13th, President Yoon has been practicing golf occasionally whenever he has time in preparation for the possibility of President Trump being elected.
In the past, President Roh Moo-hyun played golf in the rain with Blue House staff during the 3rd anniversary of the June 15 Joint Declaration, but as there are also cases of golf being used in summit diplomacy, controversy over the appropriateness of criticism of the president’s golf practice is growing. there is.
In April 2008, President Lee Myung-bak met U.S. President George W. Bush during his official visit to the United States and played golf together at Camp David, the U.S. presidential villa. At the time, the two leaders became a hot topic by riding side by side in a golf cart.
Even former President Roh Moo-hyun, who was controversial in the past for playing golf at inappropriate times, used golf as a means of socializing.
After returning Cheongnamdae, former President Roh often enjoyed golf at the golf course in Taereung, Seoul, and was shown playing a round with Kim Jong-pil, then president of the United Liberal Democrats, and Chung Dae-cheol, leader of the Democratic Party.
Former President Roh also emphasized that negative perceptions about golf should be changed, saying, “Golf is a very fun sport.” In particular, at the time, the Blue House had a golf driving range and a screen golf course installed.
In the case of former President Kim Young-sam, before becoming president, he attempted to liquidate the Fifth Republic through cooperation between the three parties after a 27-hole golf meeting with then-Republican Party President Kim Jong-pil in October 1987.
Despite past cases like this, regarding the opposition party’s continued attacks on President Yoon’s golf practice, an official from the President’s Office said, “We regret the malicious criticism of the weekend’s closed schedule.”
There are also claims that President Yoon’s golf practice is a necessary process in that it is part of a customized summit diplomacy strategy targeting President-elect Trump.
In fact, given the nature of President-elect Trump, diplomats believe that friendly diplomacy between the two leaders through golf could have a greater effect than a single trip.
Former President Lee Myung-bak narrowed differences of opinion regarding the Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA) through cart diplomacy with former President Bush and even led to a halt in the reduction of U.S. troops stationed in Korea.
Regarding President Yoon’s golf practice, a high-ranking official from the President’s Office said, “President-elect Trump is a person who has always played golf, and I know that he consistently has excellent skills according to his golf routine.” He added, “If the conversation is to continue, we need to do it.” “The president also needs to hit the ball properly, so it’s been a long time since I’ve known it and it’s necessary for him to at least start practicing for that,” he said.
[email protected] Reporter Kim Hak-jae
