There was no surprise appearance by U.S. President Donald Trump. There was also no ‘MAGA’ (Make America Great Again) hat that symbolizes President Trump.
On the 24th (local time), the U.S.-South Korea 2+2 trade talks held in Washington, D.C., proceeded in two phases. In the morning, the overall meeting included South Korea's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Finance Choi Sang-mok, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Ahn Duk-geun, U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott V. N. P. Bennett, and U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jameson Greer. In the afternoon, a technical meeting took place between Minister Ahn and Representative Greer.
Before the start of the talks, there were no events such as an invitation to the White House or a surprise appearance by President Trump.
On the 16th, President Trump hinted on the social media service ‘Truth Social’ that he would attend the negotiations when the Japanese delegation moved to Washington, and indeed, he called them to the White House for a meeting. The chief negotiator, Ryohei Akazawa, who visited the U.S. at that time, took a commemorative photo wearing a ‘MAGA’ hat gifted by President Trump, and after the photo was released, a controversy over ‘humiliation diplomacy’ arose.
Such events did not occur during the U.S.-South Korea trade talks. Observers suggest that the timing of this meeting coincided with the ‘Group of 20 (G20) Finance Ministers’ Meeting,’ which meant Secretary Bennett had to attend many meetings.
The morning 2+2 trade talks started at 8 a.m. and ended around 9:25 a.m. Out of a total of 1 hour and 25 minutes, considering ceremonial events such as photo sessions and gift exchanges, it is estimated that only about 30 minutes were actually spent on talks.
During this session, both sides agreed to prepare a ‘July package’ containing four main agendas: tariffs, non-tariffs, economic security, investment cooperation, and exchange rates, by the deadline for the tariff suspension on July 8. Deputy Prime Minister Choi evaluated the significance of this meeting, stating, “We established the basic framework by narrowing the discussion scope and forming a consensus on the discussion schedule.”
We proposed a blueprint for trade, investment, shipbuilding, and energy cooperation to the U.S. and requested a tariff exemption for South Korea. Notably, it concluded with a direct demand to eliminate tariffs on automobiles and auto parts, which are the top export items to the U.S.
The U.S.-South Korea trade talks led to a bilateral meeting in the afternoon between Minister Ahn and Representative Greer. During the bilateral meeting, Minister Ahn more actively requested a tariff exemption for South Korea from Representative Greer. He explained, “In the meeting between the Minister of Trade and Representative Greer, I reiterated the request to exempt all reciprocal tariffs, as well as tariffs on various items such as automobiles and steel, as well as all future tariffs.” They also coordinated the schedule for a high-level meeting with Representative Greer, who is set to visit South Korea next week for technical discussions and to attend the ‘APEC Ministerial Meeting’ in Jeju on May 15-16.
It seems that the U.S. side was satisfied with the contents of the discussions, as Secretary Bennett evaluated this meeting as “very successful.” Deputy Prime Minister Choi summarized, saying, “It is meaningful that we were able to share our understanding for calm and orderly discussions without rushing.”
Deputy Prime Minister Choi and Secretary Bennett exchanged commemorative coins as gifts during the meeting. The gift presented to the U.S. was a coin issued by the Bank of Korea titled ‘Commemorative Coin for South Korea's Key Industries and Economic Development.’ This coin is engraved with designs symbolizing the shipbuilding industry, including an LNG carrier and a turtle ship. The U.S. side reportedly gifted a coin featuring the eagle emblem, which is a symbol of the United States.
A representative from the delegation reported that Deputy Prime Minister Choi also selected a carefully chosen tie for the meeting. He wore a tie with a red background and a navy plaid pattern. The representative noted, “It was chosen to symbolize the colors of the United States.”