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What Trump might have missed is that Liberia shares a unique and long-standing connection with the US.
English is the country's official language and many Liberians speak with an American accent because of those historical ties to the US.
It may have been this accent that Trump picked up on.
Here are five things to know about the West African country:
Founded by freed slaves
Liberia was founded by freed African-American slaves in 1822 before declaring independence in 1847.
Thousands of black Americans and liberated Africans - rescued from transatlantic slave ships - settled in Liberia during the colonial era.
Former US President Abraham Lincoln officially declared Liberia's independence in 1862 but the country retained a lot of US heritage and it remained in the American "sphere of influence" during the colonial period.
Due to this integration, Liberian culture, landmarks and institutions have a strong African-American influence.
Ten of Liberia's 26 presidents were born in the US.
The descendants of these freed slaves, known as Americo-Liberians, dominated the country for more than 100 years.
This was resented by some indigenous Liberians and the last president from that community, William Tolbert, was overthrown and killed in a coup in 1980.
They account for about a quarter of the population, according to the Britannica website, which says more than two dozen languages are spoken in the country.
President Boakai is from the Kissi ethnic group and so would have spoken that as his mother tongue, before learning English at school.
What do Liberians make of Trump's comments?
Foreign Minister Sara Beysolow Nyanti denied it was an awkward moment, saying there was a "lack of understanding" around the world about the languages people speak in Africa, which she described as a "multi-lingual continent."
"We were not offended at all," she said, adding that away from the TV cameras, there was a discussion of the two countries' shared history.
But there was a mixed reaction among other Liberians.
Accountant Joseph Manley, 40, told the BBC that Trump should have been properly briefed before meeting Liberia's leader.
"Liberia has always been an English-speaking country. Our president represents a country with a rich educational tradition."
For human resources professional Henrietta Peter-Mogballah, the US president's surprise at Boakai's eloquence reflects a broader problem about global ignorance with regard to African nations and their peoples.
"From travel experiences and observations, most citizens of other nations outside Africa do not know a lot about African countries," she said. "The few that know a little, their minds are clouded by narratives of war, poverty, and lack of education."
However lawyer and politician Kanio Gbala agreed with the foreign minister that there was no insult meant.
