Feted as a Peacemaker in South Korea, Trump Vows to End Hostilities With North Korea

As President Trump started his six-day tour in Asia, he said he would like to meet again with North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un. And he reiterated that desire this week again and again.

But asked what he wanted to discuss with Mr. Kim, the president had no clear answer.

Now it seems Mr. Trump knows what he wants from Mr. Kim.

On Wednesday, Mr. Trump landed in South Korea for the last leg of his tour of Asia. He was greeted with fanfare and flattery over his newfound obsession of ending global conflicts.

President Lee Jae Myung of South Korea presented Mr. Trump with a medal symbolizing the nation’s highest honor “in recognition of his contribution to peace on the Korean Peninsula and his continued role as a peacemaker.” He was served a meal that included a “peacemaker’s dessert” that included a brownie flecked with gold. Mr. Lee told Mr. Trump, “It would be a historic achievement if you use your great capabilities to create peace on the Korean Peninsula.”

It was, in essence, a premature accolade — South Korea and North Korea are technically at war, as they have been for three-quarters of a century.

But soon enough, Mr. Trump vowed to earn it.

Mr. Trump indicated he would reopen dialogue with Mr. Kim, the North’s leader, telling Mr. Lee that he wanted to address “a lingering cloud that’s over your head.” He lamented that his schedule hadn’t allowed for a meeting with Mr. Kim while he was in the region but said that he was eager to speak to the North Korean leader on South Korea’s behalf.

Mr. Kim never responded to Mr. Trump’s earlier invites. But North Korea launched a missile test the day before he arrived in South Korea.

“I know you’re officially at war, but we will see what we can do to get that all straightened out,” Mr. Trump told Mr. Lee.

“We’ll work very hard with Kim Jong-un and with everybody on getting things straightened out, because that makes sense,” he added. “It’s common sense that that should work out, and I feel certain that it will. It may take a little time, you’ll have to have a little patience, but I feel absolutely certain that it will.”

The commitment came on Wednesday when South Korean officials feted Mr. Trump with some of the things known to appeal to his idiosyncrasies: a military band playing “Y.M.C.A,” a replica gold crown and side dishes made with ketchup, which Mr. Lee’s office described as “a favorite food of President Trump.”

When he stepped off the plane at Gimhae International Airport in South Korea, Mr. Trump was greeted with a red carpet and ear-piercing cannon fire. At the National Museum in Gyeongju, there were the thumping drums of “Hail to the Chief,” flag-hoisting ceremonial guards and saber-rattling soldiers. Mr. Lee also presented Mr. Trump with a replica of a golden crown that was excavated from an ancient royal tomb in Gyeongju, the seat of a long-gone kingdom.

“I’d like to wear it right now,” Mr. Trump joked.

On top of the pomp, there was an endless stream of praise for Mr. Trump.

Noting that Mr. Trump was the only foreign leader to be received as a state guest to South Korea twice, and the first U.S. president to be awarded the medal he received, the Grand Order of Mugunghwa, Mr. Lee said, “You have many firsts and onlys with you.”

The proceedings were the latest edition of a well-worn playbook for foreign leaders who flatter Mr. Trump in hopes of avoiding confrontations over trade or foreign aid. Later in the day, South Korea said it had landed an elusive deal over Mr. Trump’s tariffs.

But it was also Mr. Trump’s desire to help broker peace with North Korea that appeared top of mind for Mr. Lee.

“The very fact that you have called for a meeting and said that you are ready to meet him anytime is creating quite a warmth of peace on the Korean Peninsula,” Mr. Lee said, referring to the North Korean leader.

In a way, it was not a new tack from Mr. Lee. In August, when he visited the White House, he and Mr. Trump found common ground over wanting to engage with the North Korean leader.

The Korean Peninsula has technically been in a state of war since the 1950-53 Korean War, which ended not with a permanent peace treaty but with a temporary truce. When Mr. Trump last met with Mr. Kim, many South Koreans urged him to formally end the war with a peace treaty and normalize ties with North Korea.

The president met with Mr. Kim three times during his first term, once in 2018 and twice in 2019. The rare détente, eagerly supported by progressive South Koreans like Mr. Lee, proved short-lived. Mr. Trump’s diplomacy with Mr. Kim collapsed without deals to roll back North Korea’s nuclear weapons program or to ease international sanctions on the country.

Still, Mr. Kim said last month that he had a “good memory” of Mr. Trump from their past meetings.

But he said his country would never re-enter negotiations with Washington unless North Korea were accepted as a nuclear weapons state. In recent years, North Korea has doubled down on expanding its nuclear arsenal and cut off all dialogue with South Korea and the United States.

Mr. Trump endeavored to assure Mr. Lee that he could facilitate a breakthrough.

“I’ve been very fortunate to be able to solve a lot of problems in the world,” Mr. Trump said. “I didn’t even know there were so many problems.”

In recent months, Mr. Trump has been emboldened by his successes as a mediator. In July, he helped broker a cease-fire between Cambodia and Thailand, whose border dispute had erupted in deadly conflict.

In September, Mr. Trump put forth a plan that led to a cease-fire in between Hamas and Israel. But the truce in Gaza is shaky, with Israel launching new strikes this week. Aboard Air Force One, Mr. Trump told reporters that Israel had “a right” to retaliate against attacks by Hamas but that he considered the cease-fire to be intact.

On Sunday in Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian capital, Mr. Trump witnessed the signing of an agreement between Thailand and Cambodia.

During remarks to South Korean business leaders, Mr. Trump drew applause for the truce. And he recounted several conversations he had with leaders in recent months in which he threatened to halt trade talks should they continue their decades-old conflicts.

Mr. Trump has taken credit for a cease-fire between the South Asian neighbors, but India has rejected that characterization, saying it settled the matter directly with Pakistan.

But in South Korea, he tried to cast himself as able to manage both trade and tensions. “I’ve ended eight wars in eight months,” Mr. Trump said, repeating a murky and shifting number of conflicts he has claimed to resolve, “and, in many instances, trade has played a big part in getting those wars ended.”

As he concluded his final event, a dinner held in his honor, Mr. Trump made it clear that the South Korean trip had inspired him to try to add to his tally.

“You rolled out a red carpet that was a very good red carpet,” Mr. Trump said. “I appreciate it very much and I won’t forget the trip.”

“You have a neighbor that hasn’t been as nice as they could be,” he added, “and I think they will be.”