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US President Donald Trump signs a congratulatory message to South Korean President Moon Jae-in regarding South Korea’s Apr. 15 election. (provided by the Blue House)

South Korea’s presidential official said on Apr. 19 that the reason US President Donald Trump had arranged a phone call with South Korean President Moon Jae-in was to extend his congratulations for the results of South Korea’s parliamentary elections, in which Moon’s party won a resounding victory.

Blue House Spokesperson Kang Min-seok provided context during a briefing at the Blue House on Sunday. “Trump himself explained why he’d set up the phone call on Saturday. Trump told President Moon, using the expression ‘my friend,’ that his only reason for the call was to congratulate him on the election results,” Kang said.

“Trump kept offering congratulations throughout the phone call, using a number of expressions. After the message of congratulations, the conservation naturally turned to Trump’s praise of South Korea’s response to the coronavirus; more specifically, he used the expression ‘great victory.’ After discussing cooperation on the coronavirus response and finally affairs on the Korean Peninsula, the two leaders wrapped up the phone call.”

On Sunday, the Blue House also released two photos it had gotten from the US Embassy. One photo shows Trump signing his congratulatory message while surrounded by various figures, including Vice President Mike Pence; the other is a chart of the seats won by each party in the election. Next to the chart was a note jotted down by Trump himself: “President — congratulations — a great win!”

“The phone call between the two leaders took place around 10 pm on Apr. 18 in Korean time, and the photos were apparently taken that morning. The photos were passed along to the US Embassy in Seoul here and then the phone call took place,” explained a senior official from the Blue House.

Trump also reportedly let Moon know about receiving a personal letter from North Korean leader Kim Jong-un before revealing that information to the press. “Trump brought up what he described as a ‘warm letter,’” the senior official said. North Korea, however, has denied such a letter was sent.

But Blue House officials said the two leaders’ phone call did not advance a discussion about providing humanitarian aid to North Korea, explaining that such aid depended upon a “forward-looking” decision by the North.

While thanking Moon for diagnostic kits exported by South Korea, Trump said that the US has a good supply of ventilators and asked if South Korea needed any more. According to Blue House officials, Moon expressed his appreciation for the offer and promised to get in touch if any were needed.

By Seo Young-ji, staff reporter

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