Donald Trump Delayed His Speech by 30 Minutes to Meet with President Lee Jae Myung...Behind-the-Scenes Details Shared by the Blue House

[Financial News] U.S. President Donald Trump reportedly delayed his keynote address at a reception for heads of state by 30 minutes to continue his summit with President Lee Jae Myung. Although the U.S. protocol chief entered the meeting room, President Trump continued the conversation. The meeting, initially scheduled for 10 minutes, lasted 30 minutes.
On the 27th, a Blue House official shared behind-the-scenes details about the South Korea-U.S. summit and an event for presidential spouses during President Lee's visit to New York City. The summit on the 22nd (local time) began at 7:20 p.m. at the U.S. side's request.
President Lee greeted other leaders at a reception hosted by President Trump before moving to a separate location for the meeting. President Trump had been scheduled to attend the reception's keynote address at 7:30 p.m. after holding a 10-minute meeting.
However, when it was time for President Trump to leave for the speech, the U.S. protocol chief entered the meeting room, but the conversation continued. A Blue House official said President Trump continued the meeting, saying, "We need to keep talking." The meeting ended at 7:50 p.m., and the keynote address began at 8 p.m., 30 minutes later than originally scheduled.
The two leaders bookended their meeting with talk of golf. Near the end of the meeting, President Lee suggested playing golf together during a visit to Miami. President Trump reportedly instructed Susie Wiles, who was present, to "Set aside some time for us." The specific golf schedule has not yet been finalized.
An anecdote was also shared about Melania Trump waiting for Kim Hye-kyung before taking a group photo at a luncheon for the spouses of leaders attending the U.N. General Assembly.
Melania Trump arrived at the event venue early, at about 12:27 p.m. The organizers were preparing to take a group photo, but Melania Trump waited with the seat beside her left open for Kim Hye-kyung. Kim arrived at around 12:50 p.m., the scheduled time.
The other presidential spouses welcomed Kim, who was guided to stand next to Melania Trump for the group photo. Individual commemorative photos followed.
According to a Blue House official, the White House explained, "We waited because South Korea is the first and an important partner to participate in the Fostering the Future Together (FTFT) initiative through an agreement." FTFT is an international cooperation initiative led by Melania Trump to support children's education and use of technology.
[email protected] Seong Seok-woo and Choi Jong-geun Reporter