Minister of Commerce, Trade and Vitality Ahn Duk-geun, fourth from proper, talks with U.S. Commerce Consultant Jamieson Greer, second from left, throughout his go to to Washington D.C., Friday (native time) to debate the business partnership between the 2 nations. Courtesy of Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Vitality
Minister of Commerce, Trade and Vitality Ahn Duk-geun mentioned Tuesday the largest success in his journey to america final week was establishing a bilateral communication channel forward of different nations, permitting Korea to interact in commerce coverage negotiations with the Donald Trump administration.
Ahn advised reporters in Sejong that the communication channel was fashioned to debate cooperation in areas akin to shipbuilding, power insurance policies, crude oil and gasoline reserves growth in Alaska and tariff insurance policies. He added that the channel consists of working-level officers from each side.
“The kickoff assembly between each counterparts will happen as quickly as attainable, both through video convention or in individual. There is not going to be any procrastination,” Ahn mentioned. “Change of dialogue and knowledge will happen each day.”
Ahn’s U.S. go to coincided with these of leaders from different nations who additionally lined as much as meet Trump, together with French President Emmanuel Macron, U.Okay. Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, a scene the minister described as “bustling like a struggle zone.”
The important thing schemes for the brand new bilateral communication channel symbolize Korea’s most promising commerce offers with the Trump administration, in response to Ahn. He mentioned the U.S. authorities is betting huge on the Korean shipbuilding trade to strengthen its naval drive, whereas the Korea authorities can be attempting to additional diversify nations to import power from past the Center East for stronger power safety.
Ahn added that whereas the U.S. authorities can be mulling business partnerships with Japan, Taiwan, China and India for its Alaskan power growth, Korea imports its largest quantity of liquefied pure gasoline from the U.S.
As to tariffs, the minister mentioned he has not acquired any definitive reply from the U.S. authorities, however expects updates via the communication channel.
“Some data they’d relating to Korea was outdated or false, like how the Trump administration now plans to regulate tariffs on the U.S. lumber imports from Canada and tried to increase the measure to additionally have an effect on China and Korea. This notion’s origin dates again to the primary Trump administration (throughout 2017-21) and is now not legitimate. I straightened out all misunderstandings,” Ahn mentioned.
“At this level we don’t know the way the Trump administration will play out its commerce insurance policies in the long run. So what’s most pressing now’s to safe a communication channel and hold negotiating in favor of our (Korean) corporations.”
Whereas in Washington, Ahn met with key U.S. decision-makers in business sectors, together with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, U.S. Commerce Consultant Jamieson Greer and U.S. Secretary of the Inside Doug Burgum.
