On Monday, President Donald Trump announced plans to raise tariffs on South Korean automobiles and other products, citing delays in the South Korean National Assembly’s ratification of a special law for U.S. investments. Reports indicate that U.S. trade authorities had not raised any prior concerns or mentioned this issue to their South Korean counterparts.
In response, South Korean trade officials plan to urgently dispatch Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Kim Jung Kwan, currently in Canada, to the United States. His mission will be to ascertain the intentions behind the U.S. actions and work towards resolving the matter.
On Tuesday, a South Korean trade official told News1 in a phone interview that prior to Donald Trump’s mention of tariff increases, there had been no official notification or practical concerns from the U.S. side, adding that the government was now focusing on understanding the background and intentions behind President Trump’s social media remarks.
On Monday, President Trump stated on his social media platform that the South Korean National Assembly was failing to implement trade agreements. He announced a plan to increase mutual tariffs on automobiles, lumber, and pharmaceuticals from 15% to 25%.
Trump specifically referenced the trade agreement signed with President Lee Jae Myung, questioning why the South Korean National Assembly hadn’t approved it. Currently, the U.S. investment special law, a follow-up measure to the Korea-U.S. trade agreement, has been submitted to the National Assembly’s Finance Committee but has not yet been presented for consideration.
Minister Kim Jung Kwan, currently visiting Canada, plans to adjust his schedule to travel immediately to the U.S. for high-level discussions with U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick.
During his trip to Canada and the U.S., Minister Kim had already planned to meet with U.S. trade authorities. While the initial agenda included discussions on overall trade and industrial cooperation, including the implementation of U.S. investments, Trump’s sudden remarks on tariff increases are expected to shift the focus of these discussions towards understanding the U.S. administration’s intentions.
Meanwhile, the South Korean presidential office is expected to hold an emergency response meeting this morning, chaired by Policy Chief Kim Yong Beom, to assess the situation and formulate a strategy.
The response meeting will be attended by Yeo Han Ku, head of the Trade Negotiation Headquarters from the Ministry of Trade, while Minister Kim Jung Kwan is expected to participate via phone. The meeting will likely discuss the possibility of sending Yeo on another trip to the U.S. to address the situation.