Trump’s APEC attendance boosts competition for shipyard visit

Members of the Ulsan Metropolitan Council hold a banner at the council hall, Sept. 10, urging U.S. President Donald Trump to visit HD Hyundai Heavy Industries' Ulsan shipyard during the APEC meeting next month. Courtesy of Ulsan Metropolitan Council

Competition is now in full swing to bring U.S. President Donald Trump to a Korean shipyard during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Economic Leaders’ Meeting slated for Oct. 31 to Nov. 1 in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province.

With Trump confirming his participation in the international summit, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) and Hanwha Ocean, as well as the cities housing their shipyards, have ramped up efforts to secure a visit from the U.S. president, who has shown strong interest in revitalizing his country’s shipbuilding industry with Korean investment and technology.

HD HHI has already urged diplomatic efforts to bring Trump to its shipyard in Ulsan, a port city bordering Gyeongju.

“Our company is located about an hour’s drive from Gyeongju,” Joo Won-ho, head of HD HHI’s Naval & Special Ships Business Unit, said Friday during a meeting of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) with defense industry leaders. “If President Trump and other leaders visit HD HHI and see our vast and diverse infrastructure, they will understand how the Korean shipbuilding industry can contribute to global shipbuilding and marine defense.”

The shipbuilder is reportedly upgrading its guesthouse, which features an observation deck with a panoramic view of the shipyard. When acting U.S. Ambassador to Korea Joseph Yun visited the shipyard last month, lawmakers representing Ulsan asked him to encourage Trump to visit the facility, emphasizing the guesthouse’s suitability for a bilateral summit.

“We proposed that President Lee Jae Myung hold a summit with Trump at HD HHI’s shipyard in Ulsan,” DPK Rep. Kim Tae-seon, who represents Ulsan’s Dong District, said at a press conference on Monday.

Earlier this year, an official from the Ulsan Metropolitan Government visited the U.S. Consulate in Busan to deliver an invitation to Trump through then-Consul Nolan Barkhouse. On Sept. 10, the Ulsan Metropolitan Council unanimously passed a resolution urging Trump to visit the HD HHI shipyard during the APEC meeting.

“Trump’s visit to HD HHI could elevate the global reputation of the Korean shipbuilding industry and strengthen the Korea-U.S. alliance,” said Kim Soo-jong, vice chairperson of the council.

Geoje Mayor Byun Gwang-yong, left, delivers the city's invitation for U.S. President Donald Trump to visit Hanwha Ocean during a meeting with acting U.S. Ambassador to Korea Joseph Yun at Habib House, the U.S. ambassador's official residence in central Seoul, Aug. 27. Courtesy of Geoje City Government

Hanwha Ocean has been more reserved about officially inviting Trump, though the company has stated it would welcome his visit to its shipyard on Geoje Island, South Gyeongsang Province, which is farther from Gyeongju than HD HHI’s Ulsan site.

Last month, Geoje Mayor Byun Gwang-yong met with acting U.S. ambassador Yun to extend the city’s invitation to Trump.

“President Trump’s visit to Hanwha Ocean would be a symbolic step that strengthens Korea-U.S. trade relations and alliance, reaching beyond collaboration in shipbuilding and defense,” Byeon said.

The island city underscored Trump’s previous visit to the Geoje shipyard in 1998, when he was active in real estate and the facility was owned by Daewoo Heavy Industries. His renewed interest in Korea’s shipbuilding sector is seen in part as a result of that past visit.

Additionally, Hanwha Ocean has been a step ahead of HD HHI in U.S. cooperation through its operation of Hanwha Philly Shipyard in Philadelphia and participation in U.S. naval vessel maintenance, repair and overhaul projects.