(Original title: Li Zaiming gave Trump a metal model of a turtle ship, engraved with 6 Chinese characters "death is life, life is death")

According to the Korean media, South Korean President Li presented a number of gifts to the United States during his visit to the United States, including a turtle ship metal model, a set of golf balls, and a MAGA hat. The turtle ship model is engraved with six Chinese characters "death as a living, life as a death", which is taken from the Korean dynasty general Li Qing-sen's famous phrase "death as a living, life as a death".

Screenshot of media report

The metal model of the turtle ship is 30 centimeters long and 25 centimeters wide, made from the "turtle ship" as a prototype.

Lee in Ming gave Trump a turtle ship metal model

The model was made by Wu Zhengzhe, a mechanical assembler of Hyundai Heavy Industries in South Korea. Wu Zhengzhe said: "The government (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) requires that no other patterns should be added except the words' Gift to President Trump ', so I strictly abide by this requirement in the production process.", "As it is a gift to President Trump, I do it personally in every process and strive for perfection."

Previously reported:

Trump "likes" Lee Jae-ming's signature pen: Are you going to take it away? I like this pen

According to Yonhap News Agency, on the 25th local time, at the White House guestbook signing ceremony before the start of the South Korea-US summit, an "interlude" occurred: US President Trump expressed strong interest in the signature pen used by South Korean President Lee Jae-ming, and said on the spot,"I like this pen." Li Ziming immediately smiled and presented the pen to Trump as a "temporary gift."

On the 25th local time, Trump (right) received a pen gift from Li Zai-ming. Source: South Korean media reports with pictures

After accepting the gift, Trump said that before Lee Zaiming left, he would also prepare a gift for him.

On the 25th local time, Trump met with visiting Lee Jae-myung at the White House to discuss issues such as the US-ROK alliance, the situation on the Korean Peninsula, and US-ROK manufacturing cooperation.

Trump forced Lee Zai-ming to choose: either deal with China together or cede territory

On August 25 local time, South Korean President Lee Jae-myung went to the White House to meet with US President Trump. Although Lee Jae-myung's spokesperson insisted after the meeting that it was a "meeting to build rapport" and that "the atmosphere of the meeting was warm and there was no need to issue a written joint statement", in fact, the failure of the two heads of state to issue a joint statement still highlights the huge differences between South Korea and the United States on some thorny issues.

Hong Kong¡¯s South China Morning Post on August 26 quoted analysts as reporting that Lee¡¯s first meeting with Trump was very risky, brought unexpected challenges, burdened him heavily, and Trump¡¯s expansionism and unconventional diplomatic tendencies made allies nervous.

In addition, the United States has forced South Korea to play a greater role in dealing with its main strategic competitor, China. "President Trump is actually urging Seoul to make a choice: either join us to contain China or cede part of its territory," Doo Jin-ho of Korea's National Strategic Research Institute said in an interview. "After the summit, follow-up high-level talks may be plagued by this thorny issue, which has become a new concern in Seoul."

On August 24, when Wang Yi, a member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and Foreign Minister, met with Park Byung-suk, Special Envoy of the President of the ROK, in Beijing, he said that the development of China-ROK relations has proved that good-neighborliness and friendship, seeking common ground while reserving differences, and expanding cooperation are the right choices. China's policy towards the ROK should maintain stability and continuity. The two sides should abide by the original intention of establishing diplomatic relations, strengthen the direction of friendship, expand common interests, improve national feelings, properly handle sensitive issues, and promote China-ROK relations along the right track.

Li Zaiming poses with Trump

Asked by reporters during the meeting whether his administration would reduce the number of American troops in South Korea to give the United States more "flexibility" in the region, Mr. Trump said: "Maybe one of the things I want to do is ask them to give us ownership of the land where we have big military forts."

Trump is referring to the Humphreys Barracks where the US troops stationed in South Korea are stationed. He added that the U.S. has invested heavily in building the barracks, although South Korea has also contributed, "but I want to see if we can cancel the lease agreement and get ownership of the land where we have a large military base."

South Korea leases land to US forces under the Status of Forces Agreement, the agreed legal framework governing their status. The South China Morning Post quoted analysts as saying Mr. Trump's comments reflected his expansionist mindset, as he has also threatened to acquire or control Greenland, the Panama Canal, Canada and even the Gaza Strip.

It is worth noting that the issues extended by the meeting between the heads of state of South Korea and the United States, from the issue of the US troops stationed in South Korea to the issue involving China, are all regarded as challenges faced by South Korea. The South China Morning Post also believes that this is a "heavy burden" for Lee Jae-myung.

However, the ideas of some South Koreans seem to be "too naive" and even have the meaning of "helping to count the money after being sold."

On the "positive side," Mr. Do claimed, the new American demand confirmed South Korea's strategic importance in dealing with a rising China, providing it with a potential bargaining chip in future negotiations.

¡°By demanding territorial concessions in the context of a violation of sovereignty, the United States has shown that no matter how the coalition¡¯s modernization and its role changes, it will continue to maintain its military base in South Korea,¡± he said.

In fact, long before the talks began, Lee told reporters that it was difficult for Seoul to accept U.S. demands for so-called ¡°flexibility¡± ¡ª a ¡°flexibility¡± that refers to using U.S. forces for broader actions, including so-called ¡°response to China.¡±

Li Zai-ming also made it clear that he would cooperate with China because excessive hostility would be detrimental to South Korea's interests and would not help the South Korea-US alliance. During this visit to the United States, American media and academic circles paid close attention to the diplomatic trends of Li Zai-ming's government, especially focusing on how it seeks a balance between the United States and China, and regarded "handling relations with China" as the so-called important "diplomatic test" facing Li Zai-ming.

According to Reuters, Li in Ming hopes to establish a path of balanced cooperation with the United States, while avoiding anger on South Korea's largest trading partner China.On the day of Li's departure to the United States, a special mission led by South Korea's former congressman Park Bingsey arrived in Beijing, not only to hand over Li's personal letter to the Chinese side, but also to express clearly the demand "to push China-Korea relations back on track and strengthen economic and trade cooperation".

Li Zai-ming then gave Trump the pen he had with him as a gift Photo/South Korea Nate News

In addition, Yu Won Sik, the current Speaker of the National Assembly of South Korea, will also attend the commemoration of the 80th anniversary of the victory of the China People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War on September 3.

The column author, China Academy of Social Sciences, Asia-Pacific and Global Strategic Research Institute Dr. Li Chong-Ji, believes that Lee emphasized pragmatic and balanced diplomacy before he took office, and now inevitably takes a certain balance between China and the United States. Since the Korean-U.S. alliance is the core of South Korea's foreign policy, he first visited the United States. However, the same period of sending special envoy delegations to China and other trends also showed that although South Korea attaches importance to the Korean-U.S. alliance, it will not ignore relations with China.

According to Yonhap News Agency, Lee Jae-myung was invited to give a speech at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) of the United States on August 25th, local time. He said that, unlike the past, the ROK cannot continue to follow the so-called route of "security and economy (security depends on the United States and economy depends on China)". According to the report, "Anmeijing China" refers to South Korea's security cooperation with the United States and economic cooperation with China, and strives to "have both sides" between the United States and China.

Lee said that South Korea adhered to the "An-Mexico-China" line before the United States strongly held China, and even adopted a blockade policy against China. In recent years, the international community has seen a supply chain restructuring, and the United States has made clear its policy to contain China.

Li explicitly stated that the US side forms a competitive or even confrontational relationship with China, and cooperates in individual fields, which is an undeniable fact.The two countries are geographically closer, and the Korean side is committed to properly addressing the inevitable problems between the two countries andining good bilateral relations.

The South China Morning Post believes that the first meeting between the United States and South Korea did not announce any significant results, including the trade agreement that the two countries have been negotiating. "Overall, I think the two sides avoided any major breakdown in their relationship, but beyond that, it's hard to say they achieved more," said Zack Cooper, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute.