South Korean Leader Quietly Honing His Golf Skills to Win Over Trump

The president of South Korea began practicing golf again for the first time in eight years to eventually play with U.S. President-elect Donald Trump.

On Tuesday, the office of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol revealed that he had "recently began practicing golf again for the first time in eight years, in preparation for 'golf diplomacy' with President-elect Trump," following Trump's election to the White House, as reported by the Associated Press.

Yoon congratulated Trump on his election triumph on Thursday.

"A lot of people close to President Trump... [told me] President Yoon and Trump will have good chemistry," Yoon said at a press conference.

Analysts have stated that Trump's "America First" policies have the potential to harm relations with foreign countries. The confidence of South Koreans in the U.S.' defense commitment to them has the potential to falter as a result, as reported by AP.

"Much could depend on whether Yoon is able to strike up positive chemistry with Trump immediately during the transition and foster a close personal friendship to convince him to want to support and advance Seoul's interests," Duyeon Kim, a senior analyst at the Center for a New American Security in Washington, told AP.

In a phone call on Thursday, Yoon and Trump discussed plans to meet in person and talk further about strengthening cooperation between their nations. While Yoon recognizes that relations between the U.S. and South Korea will look very different under Trump than they did under Biden, he told reporters that "we have been preparing to hedge these risks for a long time."