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Trade minister ends weeklong US visit without meeting counterpart
Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo speaks to the press at a train station in Washington, Tuesday (local time). Yonhap
By Park Jae-hyuk
Rubio's office silent on tariff talks with foreign minister
Korea’s trade minister failed to hold a face-to-face meeting with his U.S. counterpart during his weeklong stay in Washington. The trip was originally intended to prevent the Trump administration from raising tariffs on Korean goods from 15 percent to 25 percent, reversing last year’s agreement.
The latest talks between the two countries’ top diplomats in Washington appeared unproductive as well in narrowing their differences over the tariff issue, given discrepancies in each side’s press releases regarding the issue.
As last week’s tariff talks between Korea’s industry minister and the U.S. commerce secretary ended without any tangible outcome, uncertainty continues over the export-dependent Asian country’s trade relations with its key ally.
Speaking to correspondents before his return to Korea on Tuesday (local time), Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo cited the tariff agreement signed between the United States and India the previous day as the reason he could not meet U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.
“I had in-depth talks with the deputy representative for nearly two hours,” Yeo said. “I met Greer during the World Economic Forum in Davos two weeks ago and discussed various topics.”
Asked whether the U.S. had begun the process of listing the tariff plan on the Federal Register, Yeo said consultations among relevant government agencies were underway.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources had initially announced that Yeo would meet Greer in Washington, after Trump threatened to raise tariffs on Korea. The U.S. president cited delays in the National Assembly’s passage of a special law meant to authorize Korea’s $350 billion investment in the U.S. in exchange for tariff reductions.
After Yeo’s arrival in the U.S. capital, however, the ministry abruptly declined to confirm his schedule, implying the meeting might not take place.
“Yeo met with officials from the Office of the USTR and about 20 U.S. lawmakers to reaffirm Seoul’s commitment to passing a special bill to implement the trade deal and to address non-tariff issues such as digital regulations,” the ministry said Wednesday.
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, left, speaks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington, Tuesday (local time). AFP-Yonhap
That same day, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that Foreign Minister Cho Hyun met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington on Tuesday (local time) and that the minister explained Seoul’s efforts to comply with the tariff agreement through Korean investments in the U.S.
“To ensure smooth discussions between the two countries’ trade authorities, they agreed to continued cooperation between their diplomatic agencies,” the ministry said in a press release.
However, the U.S. Department of State’s press release did not mention the tariff issue. Instead, it highlighted the two sides’ reaffirmation of their commitment to the complete denuclearization of North Korea, which was not included in Seoul’s press release.