Kim-Moon-Summit: How Samsung Was Key
Nobody should underrate the role played by corruption and the Samsung Group in the sudden moves in both Koreas.
May 1, 2018
When it comes to assessing what caused the sudden moves in both Koreas, there is another key factor far beyond Donald Trump.
Nobody should underrate the role played by corruption and the Samsung Group. The electronics giant gave millions of dollars in donations to two non-profit foundations allegedly for the benefit of Park Geun-hye, South Korea’s first female president, in February 2017. This eventually led to Park’s impeachment, arrest and criminal conviction.
Park is the daughter of a former South Korean president (and military dictator). Her feelings toward the North were also understandably tainted by the fact that, in 1974, her mother was killed by a North Korean assassin.
Her successor as South Korea’s President, Moon Jae-in, is a former student activist and human rights lawyer. He obviously looks at North Korea with a very different pair of eyes. He is eager to explore what the options to reach a lasting understanding are.
Takeaways
Nobody should underrate the role played by corruption and the Samsung Group in the sudden moves in both Koreas.
Samsung gave millions of dollars to two non-profit foundations allegedly for the benefit of Park Geun-hye. This eventually led to Park’s impeachment, arrest and criminal conviction.