Korea should approach Trump with business mindset, Sunny Park says

Sunny K. Park urged South Korea to approach President Donald Trump’s administration with a business mindset when negotiating with Washington. The Korean American entrepreneur said Seoul should consider placing more business-experienced people in negotiation roles and take a long-term view of major investments. Park also said the Korea-U.S. alliance would endure, but urged frank communication and trust-building amid disputes over intelligence sharing and perceptions that Korea is leaning toward China.

Park founded General Building Maintenance in 1983 after commercial cleaning work serving Korean immigrants grew rapidly, and he said the company became one of the top 10 private commercial cleaning companies in the United States.

Park said he first met U.S. Ambassador to Korea Michelle Park through activities connected to the George W. Bush administration and described her as straightforward, capable and committed to the Korea-U.S. alliance.

Park said Trump approaches negotiations as a businessman who expects something in return, rather than primarily through traditional diplomatic conventions.

Park predicted that Trump would not remain president beyond his current term and said major investments should be assessed over decades rather than solely in response to short-term political pressure.

Park said disputes between Seoul and Washington, including restrictions on intelligence sharing, would be temporary, but urged Korea to address U.S. concerns openly to prevent misunderstandings from damaging trust.

Published Oct 18, 2026 7:00 am KST

Sunny K. Park, president of the American Korean Friendship Society and the Korean War United Nations Veterans Memorial Foundation, speaks during an interview with The Korea Times at the newspaper's headquarters, Seoul, Monday. Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul

When Sunny K. Park arrived in the United States in 1974 with just $200 in his pocket, he had little idea that he would one day become a successful Korean American entrepreneur with extensive ties to Washington.

Park, now 84 and president of the American Korean Friendship Society, was 32 when he moved to Indiana to study at Indiana University. Having grown up in poverty and survived the 1950-53 Korean War, he recalled seeing America as a “paradise” filled with opportunities.

Two years later, however, he left school to support his family and began selling life insurance door to door. His involvement with the Korean immigrant community eventually led him into a different line of work. While helping newly arrived Koreans find jobs, Park noticed growing demand in the commercial cleaning industry.

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“Korean immigrants came into the U.S., but they had a tough time to get a job, so I helped them and that brought me to a new industry — commercial cleaning,” Park told The Korea Times.

“That business became so popular and it doubled in just one year. I gave up the insurance sales and started doing more on the commercial janitorial (services). We became one of the top 10 private commercial cleaning companies in the U.S.”

Park founded General Building Maintenance in 1983 and went on to establish himself as a prominent Korean American business leader. Over the years, he also built ties with government officials, politicians, universities, religious groups and other organizations in the U.S., as well as with Korean communities on both sides of the Pacific.

But Park said building that network as an immigrant and ethnic minority required years of effort.

“(You) can go out to picketing, but nobody is going to really honor what you're preaching for … When I donated money, they paid attention to me and came back asking for more. I kept giving and continued to do so since 1979,” he said.

Park, a Republican, developed relations with many prominent figures in the party, including current U.S. Ambassador to Korea Michelle Park. He said he came to know her while they were both involved in activities connected to the George W. Bush administration and came away impressed by her ability and commitment to the Korea-U.S. alliance.

“She's a very smart person and she is straightforward. She doesn't hide anything. So she is the right person for that job,” he said, describing her as an American ambassador with a Korean heart.

Park also rejected suggestions that her qualifications should be discounted because of her husband or her ties to U.S. President Donald Trump.

“A lot of people say, ‘Oh, she’s a Trump (person),’” he said. “You cannot change that, and what’s wrong with that? Trump is the most powerful person in the world, so make the most of it.”

Trump as businessman

When asked about Trump, Park said he had dealt with him before he became president and described him primarily as a businessman driven by negotiation and returns.

“He's a very business-oriented person,” Park said.

He argued that Korean officials should take that mindset into account when dealing with the Trump administration and consider placing more people with business experience in positions involved in negotiations with Washington.

“Korea really needs to have a different perspective. There's a good thing when you deal with a merchant — they are looking for more profit,” he said.

Park characterized Trump as someone who expects something in return from a deal, rather than approaching negotiations through traditional diplomatic conventions.

He also predicted that Trump would not remain president beyond his current term and argued that, where possible, Korea should take a longer-term view toward major investments rather than making decisions solely in response to short-term political pressure since major investments often take decades to generate returns.

Trust at heart of alliance

On recent friction between Seoul and Washington, including restrictions on intelligence sharing, Park said he expected such disputes to be temporary and expressed confidence that the alliance would endure.

“I feel that the relationship between the two nations will remain strong. Looking back last 75 years of history of the two nations, there were times the relationship was troublesome but the leaders ultimately made wise decisions (and) put the past behind us,” he said.

However, he suggested building trust between the two countries to allay U.S. concerns, particularly what he described as a growing perception that Korea is moving closer to China.

“American people will never let Korea down. I'm pretty sure … (But) they already have a perception that (Korea is) leaning toward China,” Park said.

For Park, maintaining the alliance ultimately comes down to trust and frank communication, particularly when the two sides disagree. He urged Seoul to address Washington’s concerns openly rather than allow misunderstandings to deepen.

“Take everything out and show (what's in) my pocket. (Say) ‘This is what it is,’ and then ask ‘what should I do’?”

Park added such openness was essential to preserving the trust that has sustained the alliance through decades of political and diplomatic challenges.

韩裔美国企业家朴善京(Sunny K. Park)敦促韩国在与华盛顿谈判时，应以商业思维对待特朗普政府。她表示，首尔应考虑在谈判中安排更多具有商业经验的人员，并对重大投资采取长远眼光。朴善京还表示，韩美同盟关系将会维系，但她也呼吁双方在情报共享争议以及外界认为韩国倾向于中国的背景下，进行坦诚沟通并建立信任。

1983年，朴先生创立了通用楼宇维护公司，当时为韩国移民提供的商业清洁服务迅速发展。他说，该公司已成为美国排名前十的私营商业清洁公司之一。

朴先生表示，他第一次见到美国驻韩国大使朴美雪是通过与乔治·W·布什政府有关的活动，并形容她为人坦率、能干，并且致力于韩美同盟。

朴槿惠表示，特朗普对待谈判的态度就像一个商人，他希望从中获得回报，而不是主要遵循传统的外交惯例。

朴智星预测特朗普不会在当前任期结束后继续担任总统，并表示重大投资应该以数十年为单位进行评估，而不是仅仅为了应对短期的政治压力。

朴槿惠表示，首尔和华盛顿之间的争端，包括情报共享限制，都是暂时的，但她敦促韩国公开回应美国的关切，以防止误解损害信任。

发布于2026年10月18日 上午7:00（韩国标准时间）

周一，美韩友好协会和朝鲜战争联合国老兵纪念基金会会长朴善京（Sunny K. Park）在首尔《韩国时报》总部接受采访。照片由《韩国时报》沈贤哲（Shim Hyun-chul）拍摄。

1974 年，当 Sunny K. Park 身揣 200 美元来到美国时，他几乎没有想到自己有一天会成为一位成功的韩裔美国企业家，并与华盛顿建立了广泛的联系。

现年84岁的朴先生是美韩友好协会会长，他32岁时搬到印第安纳州，就读于印第安纳大学。由于在贫困中长大，并经历了1950年至1953年的朝鲜战争，他回忆说，当时的美国是一个充满机遇的“天堂”。

然而，两年后，他为了养家糊口而辍学，开始挨家挨户推销人寿保险。他对韩国移民社区的了解最终让他走上了另一条职业道路。在帮助新来的韩国人寻找工作的过程中，朴先生注意到商业清洁行业的需求日益增长。

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“韩国移民来到美国，但他们很难找到工作，所以我帮助他们，这让我进入了一个新的行业——商业清洁，”朴告诉《韩国时报》。

“那项业务非常受欢迎，一年之内就翻了一番。我放弃了保险销售，开始更多地从事商业清洁服务。我们成为了美国排名前十的私营商业清洁公司之一。”

朴先生于1983年创立了通用建筑维修公司，并逐渐成为一位杰出的韩裔美国商界领袖。多年来，他还与美国政府官员、政界人士、大学、宗教团体和其他组织，以及太平洋两岸的韩国社区建立了广泛的联系。

但朴女士表示，作为一名移民和少数族裔，建立起这样的关系网需要多年的努力。

“你可以去参加抗议活动，但没人会真正重视你所宣扬的理念……当我捐款时，他们开始关注我，并回来寻求更多捐助。我一直捐款，从1979年至今一直如此，”他说。

身为共和党人的朴槿惠与党内多位知名人士建立了密切联系，其中包括现任美国驻韩国大使朴美雪。他表示，两人相识于乔治·W·布什政府时期，当时他们都参与了与朴美雪相关的活动，朴美雪的能力和对韩美同盟的坚定承诺给他留下了深刻的印象。

“她非常聪明，为人坦率，从不隐瞒任何事情。所以她是这份工作的最佳人选，”他说道，并形容她是一位拥有韩国情怀的美国大使。

朴槿惠还驳斥了因其丈夫或与美国总统唐纳德·特朗普的关系而应轻视其资历的说法。

“很多人说，‘哦，她是特朗普的支持者，’”他说。“你改变不了这一点，但这又有什么错呢？特朗普是世界上最有权势的人，那就好好利用这一点吧。”

特朗普作为商人

当被问及特朗普时，朴正熙表示，他在特朗普当选总统之前就与他有过接触，并称特朗普主要是一位以谈判和回报为导向的商人。

“他是一个非常注重生意的人，”朴先生说。

他认为，韩国官员在与特朗普政府打交道时应该考虑到这种心态，并考虑让更多有商业经验的人担任与华盛顿谈判的职位。

“韩国真的需要换个角度看待问题。和商家打交道的好处在于——他们都在追求更高的利润，”他说。

朴槿惠认为，特朗普希望从交易中获得回报，而不是按照传统的外交惯例进行谈判。

他还预测特朗普不会在当前任期结束后继续担任总统，并认为，韩国在进行重大投资时，应尽可能采取长远眼光，而不是仅仅因为短期政治压力而做出决定，因为重大投资往往需要数十年才能产生回报。

信任是联盟的核心

针对近期首尔和华盛顿之间的摩擦，包括情报共享限制等问题，朴槿惠表示，他预计此类争端是暂时的，并对联盟关系的持续性表示有信心。

“我认为两国关系将继续保持牢固。回顾两国过去75年的历史，两国关系也曾出现过一些问题，但两国领导人最终都做出了明智的决定，将过去的事情抛诸脑后。”他说道。

然而，他建议两国建立互信，以消除美国的担忧，特别是他所说的韩国正走向中国这一日益增长的看法。

“美国人民永远不会让韩国失望。我很确定……（但是）他们已经有一种看法，认为（韩国）正在向中国靠拢，”朴槿惠说。

对朴槿惠而言，维系韩美同盟的关键在于信任和坦诚沟通，尤其是在双方存在分歧时。他敦促首尔公开回应华盛顿的关切，而不是任由误解加深。

“把所有东西都拿出来，让我看看我口袋里有什么。（说）‘这就是东西’，然后问‘我该怎么办’？”

朴槿惠补充说，这种开放态度对于维护数十年来在政治和外交挑战中维系联盟的信任至关重要。