[Exclusive] This Week's Korea-US Tariff Negotiation Watershed... Ruling and Opposition Parties, Government, and Special Envoy All-In for US Visit

[Financial News] The ruling and opposition parties have joined forces to overcome the tariff pressure from the Donald Trump US government. Members of the Korea-US Parliamentary League will visit the US on the 20th. The Minister of Strategy and Finance and the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy will also visit the US to negotiate with the US Treasury Secretary and others around the 23rd. The Foreign Minister is also expected to visit the US soon to coordinate a Korea-US summit. A special envoy to the US, led by former Doosan Group Chairman Park Yong-man, is also expected to visit the US on the 23rd. As this week could be a watershed for the Korea-US tariff negotiations, it seems to be aimed at finding a breakthrough through high-level sequential visits to the US.

The delegation to the US, consisting of 13 members of the Korea-US Parliamentary League, including Cho Jung-sik of the Democratic Party and Na Kyung-won of the People Power Party, will depart on this day and meet with US Senate and House members for 5 nights and 7 days.
The Korea-US Parliamentary League is focusing on resolving the difficulties faced by our companies operating in the US. To this end, they met with executives from major companies affected by US tariffs, such as Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix, Hyundai Motor, LG Energy Solution, POSCO, Hanwha Ocean, and HD Hyundai, on the 16th to gather requests.
Companies have expressed concerns about the impact of item-specific tariffs already applied to steel and automobiles and the mutual tariffs effective from August 1st. In particular, companies like Samsung Electronics and Hyundai Motor, which have made large investments in the US, complained about 'double tariffs' on materials and parts needed for US factories.
The delegation plans to meet with influential members of Congress, including Korean-American Senators Andy Kim and Young Kim, and those close to President Trump, to convey our position. They also plan to visit Georgia, where Hyundai and Kia factories are located, to meet with Governor Brian Kemp and state legislators. Additionally, they intend to privately contact US government officials to attempt direct persuasion.
A member of the delegation told Financial News, "In principle, Korea-US parliamentary diplomacy does not meet with the US government side, but we are trying to have unofficial meetings."

Last week, the People Power Party assisted in the appointment of Koo Yoon-cheol of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance, Kim Jeong-gwan of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, and Cho Hyun of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who are the main parties of the tariff negotiations. They accepted the government's appeal for the urgency of the tariff negotiations.
Koo Yoon-cheol of the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and Kim Jeong-gwan of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy are expected to visit the US around the 22nd, shortly after taking office, to meet with their counterparts, US Treasury Secretary Scott Besant, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and USTR Representative Jamison Greer, to negotiate tariffs. There is also a possibility of forming a '2+2 high-level consultative body' where the finance and trade ministers of both countries will meet. If this happens, it will be the first '2+2 high-level consultative body' meeting under the Lee Jae-myung administration.
The government has proposed cooperation in the manufacturing sectors such as shipbuilding, defense, and energy as negotiation cards. However, since the US is also demanding politically sensitive issues such as expanding the opening of the agricultural and livestock markets and improving the online platform law, the internal atmosphere of the government is cautious.
The Foreign Minister is also coordinating a schedule to visit the US after the inauguration ceremony on the 21st to hold talks with Secretary of State Marco Rubio. It is known that they plan to visit Washington before the tariff negotiation deadline to hold a Korea-US foreign ministers' meeting. The meeting is expected to focus on discussions on the security package being conducted alongside the Korea-US tariff negotiations and the timing of the Korea-US summit.
A special envoy to the US, led by former Doosan Group Chairman Park Yong-man, is also expected to visit the US on the 23rd. It is reported that they are pushing for a meeting schedule with high-ranking US government officials to deliver a personal letter from President Lee to President Trump.
Regarding this, a member of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee from the People Power Party said, "If Cho Hyun's appointment is cooperated with, he said he would immediately run to the US to support the tariff negotiations, and as a traditional diplomat who knows the importance of the Korea-US alliance well, he was cooperated with." 
uknow@fnnews.com Kim Yoon-ho Lee Bo-mi Reporter