Supporters of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol are banking their hopes on President Donald Trump coming to their aid.
South Korea has been embroiled in a political crisis since December, when Yoon suddenly declared martial law, a move that was quickly overturned when opposition lawmakers were able to access parliament. Yoon was ousted, arrested, and indicted on charges of directing a rebellion — a charge that could carry the death penalty or life in prison if convicted. His prosecution has emboldened his supporters, who are now looking to their ideologically aligned ally across the Pacific for help.
According to Michelle Kim, writing for Foreign Policy, the largely evangelical Christian movement views Trump as a quasi-Messianic figure destined to contain Chinese expansion. They have flocked to online forums to spread their belief that influence from Beijing was behind Yoon's ousting and arrest and that Trump is their final hope in reversing his misfortunes.
The outlet cited one anti-feminist forum, New Man Power, in which supporters said they have one last “strong card to play — Trump.”
The Washington Examiner reached out to New Man Power for comment.
The Hail Mary hopes for Trump extend to South Korea's parliament. People Power Party lawmaker Na Kyung-won attended Trump's inauguration and wrote of her plans to make a direct appeal to the president on Yoon's behalf in a post on Facebook before she left.
“We will deliver an accurate account of the unprecedented state of affairs, detailing how the opposition party incited a rebellion to impeach the president and, thereafter, the acting president,” she wrote.
“We will articulate to the United States how the opposition party denigrated liberal democratic diplomacy and espoused a totalitarian, anti-liberal worldview through its impeachment efforts,” Na added.
Conservative South Koreans' hopes in Trump have been reflected in their adoption of his slogans, including "Stop the Steal," and waving American flags.
Yoon’s most loyal base shares some similarities with Trump’s, consisting of many evangelical Christians.
Pyongyang, previously called the “Jerusalem of the East,” was once the center of Christianity in East Asia, nurtured largely by American Protestant missionaries. After the takeover by the atheistic communist regime of Kim Il-Sung, most North Korean Christians followed retreating American troops south during the Korean War, settling in South Korea. The influx contributed to South Korea developing some of the largest shares of Christians in East Asia.
Those surviving and their descendants view the U.S. as their protector and responsible for South Korea’s rise during the latter half of the 20th century. As in the U.S., evangelical Christians in South Korea are among the most conservative and most politically active demographics. They helped Yoon, a Christian, stay afloat despite historically low approval ratings. The current crisis isn’t the first time they have drawn parallels with political developments in the U.S., with Yoon’s 2022 victory being compared to Trump’s rise.
Despite this, experts have cast doubt on Trump coming to Yoon's aid, indicated by his muted public response.
“Trump will not want to side with Yoon to instigate further chaos and conflict and create a critically crippled South Korea, which would empower China, Russia, and North Korea to take charge of Northeast Asia,” Kim Heung-kyu, a professor of political science at Ajou University and the director of the U.S.-China Policy Institute, told Foreign Policy.
He further speculated that Trump likely views Yoon as a political loser, a major deal-breaker for him.
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Trump has even poked fun at Yoon, commenting last month, “Everyone calls me chaotic, but look at South Korea.”
He joked that he would meet with Yoon “if they ever stop impeaching him.”