SerpApi.Org
WASHINGTON — Korea is nearing the selection of its first investment project in the United States and expects to announce the details in late August or September, Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said Wednesday.
"We are doing our utmost to create a win-win outcome for both Korea and the United States," Kim told reporters shortly after arriving at Dulles International Airport near Washington. "The negotiations are now in their final stages.”
Kim also outlined a rough timeline based on the ongoing talks.
"As any negotiation enters its final stretch, the toughest issues are usually the last to be resolved," Kim said. "If we can get through those, I expect we'll be able to announce the first U.S. investment project in late August or sometime in September."
Kim’s remarks came in response to a question about whether ministerial-level talks between Seoul and Washington supported presidential chief of staff for policy Kim Yong-beom's earlier forecast that the first U.S. investment project would be unveiled in August or September.
"Projects with stable cash flows are naturally the stronger candidates, and those tend to be in the energy sector," the industry minister said after being asked whether the talks had narrowed to energy projects such as liquefied natural gas (LNG). “That's where our discussions are currently focused."
Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan is scheduled to attend the opening ceremony of the Korea-U.S. Shipbuilding Partnership Center in Washington on Thursday. He is expected to meet U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick — his counterpart — to discuss Korea's planned investment projects in the United States.
"I also hope to meet the U.S. commerce secretary and other secretaries to discuss a range of pending issues," Kim said.
Nearly a year after Korea announced the $350 billion investment to the United States, it has yet to name the first project. The delay has fueled criticism in Washington that Seoul has been slow to implement the deal.
"We are well aware that such perceptions exist," he said. "The final agreement between President Lee Jae Myung and [U.S.] President Donald Trump was reached in late October last year, and there were unavoidable domestic procedures, including related legislation that took effect in June.”
Kim said Seoul and Washington remained in “close consultations” over the project and would continue those discussions during his visit. He also noted that Korea could not proceed with the project unconditionally, as it must satisfy the criteria of "commercial reasonableness."
Kim also said he would discuss U.S. trade measures and tariffs during the visit alongside Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo.
In particular, Seoul plans to explain its position to Lutnick and other U.S. officials regarding potential tariffs under Section 301 of the U.S. Trade Act, which the Donald Trump administration could announce as the current 10 percent global duty imposed under Section 122 is set to expire on Friday.
"The current 10 percent global tariff expires on Friday, and we plan to discuss those issues as well," the Korean industry minister said.
Addressing concerns in parts of the U.S. government and Congress that the Korean government has unfairly targeted U.S.-listed e-commerce platform Coupang, Kim said the two sides still had misunderstandings over the issue.
"There are still misunderstandings and differences in how the two sides view the Coupang issue, and our job is to clear up those misunderstandings and narrow those differences," he said.
"When we explain the situation to U.S. officials, many of them say, 'So that's what happened,' 'We didn't know that' or 'That's very different from what we had heard.’ The [Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources] and other relevant ministries are all working to help the U.S. side better understand the issue,” Kim said.
BY KIM HYOUNG-GU [[email protected]]
