President Donald Trump speaks during the Commander-in-Chief Ball at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., Jan, 20, 2025. (Department of Defense)
CAMP HUMPHREYS, South Korea — Special, virtual guests took centerstage at the Commander-in-Chief Ball, one of several held to mark President Donald Trump’s inauguration Monday in Washington.
Eighth Army commander Lt. Gen. Christopher LaNeve and about 40 members of his staff — including deputy commander Brig. Gen. Lee Sang Min and Command Sgt. Major Robin Bolmer — appeared via a big-screen video call from the Maxwell D. Taylor Operations Center at Camp Humphreys.
The Commander-in-Chief Ball, full of military members, was the first of three that Trump and his entourage attended that night. Video of the ball was posted on the Pentagon’s Defense Visual Information Distribution Service.
Trump, at a lectern onstage, called up to the big screen above him: “Hello, everybody, how we doing over there? How’s Kim Jong Un doing?”
The president’s reference to the North Korean leader drew laughter from the audience inside the Washington Convention Center.
Trump, referring to the command group on-screen, followed by saying: “That’s a good-looking group of people, isn’t it?”
LaNeve in response described Eighth Army as “the bedrock of unmistakable land power on freedom’s frontier in Asia, protector of both homelands, sir. Proud to stand before you today representing our incredible team here in Korea. We’re deeply grateful to be part of this occasion.”
LaNeve congratulated Trump on his return to office and invited him to visit Camp Humphreys, where Eighth Army is headquartered, along with U.S. Forces Korea, U.N. Command and the Combined Forces Command. About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed on the peninsula, serving alongside South Korean military forces.
President Donald Trump speaks via video call to Eighth Army commander Lt. Gen. Christopher LaNeve and his staff during the Commander-in-Chief Ball at the Washington Convention Center in Washington, D.C., Jan, 20, 2025. (Department of Defense)
“Sir, on behalf of the men and women who serve under my command and the thousands of dedicated service members that are part of the joint team in Korea, congratulations on your victory as 47th president of the United States,” LaNeve said.
“Welcome back, Mr. President, we’d be privileged to host you here real soon.”
The ball is a tradition introduced in 2005 by President George W. Bush. It has evolved under each administration, reflecting unique presidential styles.
The interaction between LaNeve and Trump “reflects the longstanding tradition of recognizing and honoring the service of U.S. military personnel stationed around the world,” Chongwon Choe, an Eighth Army spokesman, told Stars and Stripes by email Wednesday.
On the call, Trump brought up the North Korean leader a second time, calling him “somebody with some pretty bad intentions.”
Trump met with Kim three times, most recently on June 30, 2019, when Trump briefly stepped into North Korea at the Demilitarized Zone.
“I guess I would say that, although I developed a good relationship with him, but he’s a tough cookie,” Trump said. “How’s it going over there, how’s it going?”
LaNeve replied: “Sir, every day we train, we stay hard, we plan for possibly everything you could need us to do. The alliance is strong; we’re ready to receive you, Mr. President.”
Trump, apparently impressed with LaNeve’s demeanor, said, “Is this man [from] central casting, or what? If I’m doing a movie, I pick him to play my lead.”
Trump thanked the group and said he would see them soon.
He concluded the short back-and-forth by asking if anyone else in the command group had a statement to make. LaNeve scanned the group, paused and raised his right arm above head, his fist clenched, and shouted, “Hooah!”
