The South Korean and U.S. trade ministers met on the 16th in Jeju and agreed to hold technical consultations next week in the United States on six areas: balanced trade, non-tariff measures, economic security, digital trade, origin, and commercial considerations.
Minister Ahn Duk-geun of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Jamieson Greer, U.S. Trade Representative, held a bilateral meeting that afternoon at the International Convention Center Jeju (ICC) and discussed tariffs related to the U.S. measures.
During the meeting, Minister Ahn reiterated the request to the U.S. side for item-specific tariffs on automobiles and steel, as well as exemptions for reciprocal tariffs by country. He noted that the U.S. side showed that it "understood well" our demands.
The meeting was held as a mid-term check before the conclusion of the "July package" set as a goal by South Korea and the U.S. Minister Ahn explained that they "reviewed the progress of the technical consultations between the two countries that began on May 1 in Washington, D.C., and discussed future consultation plans."
The two countries also agreed to hold a second round of technical consultations in the U.S. next week. Minister Ahn explained that "in the second technical consultation, a delegation composed of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and related ministries will visit the United States to hold substantive consultations with the U.S. government, focusing on six areas: balanced trade, non-tariff measures, economic security, digital trade, origin, and commercial considerations."
The delegation for the second technical consultation will be led by Director Jang Seong-gil of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's Trade Policy Bureau, and officials from the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, as well as the Ministry of Science and ICT, will accompany them.
Minister Ahn said, "The deadline for consultations set by the U.S. government is approaching in about 50 days" and added, "While actively consulting with the U.S. with national interests as our top priority, I will also explain the consultation process to the National Assembly and the public in detail."