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Korea experts in Washington, greeting the first U.S. visit of President Lee Myung-bak, appeared to be full of a sense of anticipation. A report on Korea-U.S. relations by a group of 11 experts was titled, "New Beginnings." Among the experts were Don Oberdorfer, chairman of the U.S. Korea Institute of the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, Charles Pritchard, president of the Korea Economic Institute in Washington, D.C., and Evans Revere, president of the Korea Society. "Lee is a pragmatist and a globalist who stresses the primacy of the United States in his country's foreign and security policy," they said in a gathering announcing the report on April 14, the eve of Lee's U.S. visit. "The United States and the Republic of Korea have a major opportunity to strengthen their alliance and transform it into a global partnership."
On May 15, American University hosted a seminar, entitled, "Korea-U.S. Relations in the Lee Myung-bak Presidency." Placards used during Lee's presidential campaign were hung on the walls of the Students Hall. The seminar was attended by about 200 students from the university's School of International Service and Korean Americans. The atmosphere was that of a festival rather than of an academic meeting. Louis Goodman, dean of the School, said Korea-U.S. relations have come to the point of a new leap forward.
The welcoming mood for Lee contrasts with the awkward relations America had with the progressive Korean governments. The "New Beginnings" report began with this phrase, "After a period of strain and tension during the past decade --" John Hamre, president and CEO of Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), confided to Lee the U.S. had an uncomfortable time with the Roh Moo-hyun administration."
Korean residents in America are naturally better pleased with the new chief executive, who vowed to "respect and further strengthen traditional Korea-U.S. relations," than with his predecessor, who said, "What's wrong with being anti-American?" A discussion with Korean Americans at a Washington hotel on April 16 reminded one of Lee's inauguration two months ago. Swarmed by members of the audience who wanted to shake hands with him, Lee found it difficult to get to the rostrum, and his speech was often interrupted by thunderous applause.
The most moving moment for Lee must have been his last night in America at President Bush¡¯s retreat of Camp David, the first such privilege a South Korean president has ever enjoyed.
Lee enjoyed a second honeymoon in Washington, which had escaped him quickly at home. He must have felt irritated with a domestic political scene that hobbles him from the outset when he is so highly valued in Washington. It was in this context that Lee told the Korean Americans at the gathering, "For us to survive in global competition, everything must change. Politics has to change even more." Successive Korean presidents said something similar when they were returning home from overseas tours.
Looking at South Korea from a global perspective, the power struggles going on in the country are indeed lamentable. Lee's question, "How much longer will we have to distinguish pro-Lee from pro-Park?" are an expression of his frustration with our politics, the constant struggle between "them" and "us." But Lee should first get rid of his own frame of reference.
Lee may feel he has been doing it for quite a while. But many citizens perceive that the serious rifts in the new ruling camp are due to several of Lee's aides making use of his halo in an attempt to secure their own position. The president cannot be absolved of the responsibility for that discontent. The problem grew from giving priority to Lee supporters in the new administration's key personnel decisions and the party nomination of candidates for the legislature.
Lee no longer needs to compete with any politician. Unlike previous presidents who lived with politics their whole lives, Lee, I believe, has no desire to foster a political heir. Dismantling the borderline between pro-Lee and pro-Park could be an unexpectedly simple task, if only Lee makes up his mind.
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