Ruling and opposition parties agree on U.S. investment special act, to be passed by special committee on the 9th

According to The Financial News, the ruling and opposition parties on the 5th resolved the key points of contention over the Special Act on Korea–U.S. Strategic Investment Management (Special Act on Strategic Investment in the United States) and reached an agreement. After final coordination with the government, they plan to pass the Special Act on Strategic Investment in the United States at the full meeting of the special committee on the 9th.
Representative Park Soo-young of the People Power Party, who serves as secretary of the special committee, told reporters during the bill review subcommittee that most of the contentious issues had been settled. He stated, "Most of the points of contention have been resolved, and there should be no problem with passage at the full committee meeting on the 9th."
The disputed issue of creating a new investment corporation was resolved by agreeing to establish and operate it on a minimal scale. The originally proposed capital of 3 to 5 trillion won will be reduced to 2 trillion won, all of which will be funded by the government. The number of directors will be cut from five to three, and the staff size will be capped at 50 instead of 500. This compromise reflects the People Power Party’s decision to step back from its earlier position that the role should be entrusted to the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC).
Instead of requiring prior approval from the National Assembly, the procedure was eased to a prior report, but the reporting entity was set as the government rather than the corporation. The government must directly report U.S.-related investment projects to the National Assembly in advance, ensuring it cannot evade responsibility. Investment information will be kept confidential only for parts that involve national security or trade secrets related to corporate management activities.
The clause on "commercial reasonableness" contained in the Korea–U.S. Strategic Investment Memorandum of Understanding was incorporated as is, without adding any further provisions. Lawmakers were concerned that additional wording could prompt objections from the U.S. side. To manage investment risks, they also decided to establish a Risk Management Committee, which will assess the risks of projects selected by the project management committee.
If the Special Act on Strategic Investment in the United States is approved by the special committee on the 9th, it will then be reviewed by the Legislation and Judiciary Committee and is expected to receive final approval at the plenary session of the National Assembly on the 12th.

uknow@fnnews.com Kim Yoon-ho, Kim Hyeong-gu Reporter