What a BS tweet, and from the Wall Street Journal’s Seoul Bureau Chief no less:
No Tillerson? No problem. S. Korea's foreign minister, originally scheduled to meet Rex in Washington, will meet Ivanka instead.https://t.co/TSnA5vqC9a
— Jonathan Cheng (@JChengWSJ) March 16, 2018
Now here’s what’s really going on. Yes, this report says Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha will meet with Ivanka Trump, but she’s also meeting with Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan, who has taken over for Tillerson. So it’s not a meeting with Ivanka “instead” of Tillerson; it’s a meeting with Tillerson’s replacement and Ivanka while she’s in town. That’s a huge difference:
South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha will meet with U.S. President Donald Trump’s daughter during her visit to the U.S.
During a regular press briefing on Thursday, Foreign Ministry Spokesman Noh Kyu-duk confirmed Kang and Ivanka Trump would sit down together when asked if such a meeting might be on the cards.
The ministry has yet to disclose the details of the meeting, including the purpose and the date. There’s speculation the two will exchange opinions regarding the forthcoming summits between the two Koreas and between the U.S. and the North.
According to Noh, during her three-day visit to Washington from Thursday, Kang will also meet with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Sullivan, who is serving as the acting secretary following the dismissal of Rex Tillerson, to discuss pending issues between Seoul and Washington, including the North Korean nuclear issue.
But honesty wouldn’t get you a viral tweet. 3000 likes for Cheng’s BS, 72 for CNN’s Kaitlan Collins’ honest report:
South Korea’s Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha will meet with Ivanka Trump during her three-day visit to the U.S, according to South Korea’s Foreign Ministry. Kang was supposed to meet with Rex Tillerson too, but will now meet with the deputy secretary John Sullivan instead.
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) March 15, 2018
And yes, the Ivanka–Kang meeting did take place. Via Twitter’s translation, “…we had a nice reunion in Washington this time. :)”:
3.15~17 미국을 방문 중인 강경화 장관은 워싱턴에 도착하자 마자 이방카 보좌관과 만남의 시간을 가졌는데요. 지난 2월 평창에서의 만남에 이어, 이번에는 워싱턴에서 반가운 재회를 하였습니다. 🙂 pic.twitter.com/wNwGHolvlR
— 외교부 (@mofa_kr) March 15, 2018
You see, Kang and Ivanka met during her visit to South Korea for the Olympics, hence the reunion (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth):
But Kang also met with members of Congress with the Sullivan meeting upcoming:
FWIW, she met not just @IvankaTrump (seen here: https://t.co/mnWIg0FKi6) but also members of Congress yesterday… and her scheduled meeting w/ Tillerson is now w/ his Deputy, John Sullivan https://t.co/iZGPkSY1f9
— Conor Finnegan (@cjf39) March 16, 2018
Here she is with Paul Ryan, for example:
한반도 정세의 중요한 분수령이 될
남북, 북미 정상회담의 성공적 개최를 위해워싱턴을 방문 중인 강경화 장관은 미 의회를 방문, 폴 라이언 하원의장, 상하원 지도부 인사와, 한반도 정세 , 한미 경제･통상 및 동맹 현안 등에 대해 의견을 교환하였습니다. https://t.co/qk6gG34wIF pic.twitter.com/S31RFkRAQ0
— 외교부 (@mofa_kr) March 16, 2018
If Cheng’s name rings a bell for Twitchy readers, it should. He’s the one who spread the false rumor in February that the U.S. was preparing a “bloody nose” strike against North Korea:
Sarah Sanders SLAPS DOWN WSJ reporter over unverified claim of political 'bloody nose' strike against North Korea https://t.co/vb20btAvIH
— Twitchy Team (@TwitchyTeam) February 3, 2018
Cheng was forced to delete that report after getting slapped down by Sarah Sanders and the National Security Council:
It was a mistake to tweet the report from Hankyoreh about comments purportedly made by the NSC’s Matt Pottinger without verification, and I’ve deleted it. The NSC has denied the report, calling it an “unsourced, unbylined, untrue accusation.” pic.twitter.com/AcYliD1zoB
— Jonathan Cheng (@JChengWSJ) February 3, 2018
Never happened. Pottinger is a Marine who served in two wars and doesn’t take military action lightly. Can’t believe @WSJ reporter didn’t reach out for a comment before repeating such a reckless accusation. https://t.co/B270jlqHUs
— Stephanie Grisham (@PressSec) February 3, 2018
It’s becoming a pattern.
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