Lee: “Don’t predetermine the outcome on CPTPP; resume talks from square one”

[Financial News] President Lee Jae-myung instructed officials not to rush into discussions on the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) with the outcome already decided, but to resume dialogue from square one.
Kang Yoo-jung, the Blue House’s senior presidential spokesperson, conveyed President Lee’s instructions from the closed-door meeting in a written briefing on the outcomes of the 43rd Cabinet meeting that day.
Lee noted that views had been expressed that the CPTPP’s strategic value was important amid upheaval in the international trade order, while concerns among the agriculture and fisheries sectors were very serious. He emphasized the need to secure trust and consensus among farmers and fishers in the policy-making process, and directed that dialogue be resumed from square one.
The closed-door meeting also received a report on “Progress on State Agenda Items in the Third and Fourth Quarters of 2026.” Of the 564 implementation tasks included in the 123 state agenda items, 521 were proceeding as planned, for an implementation rate of 92%. Lee instructed officials to prepare a detailed table of measures to address jeonse and monthly rents, including public rental and purchased rental housing, and submit it.
The meeting also reviewed measures to reduce occupational accidents and deaths by suicide. Lee asked the Ministry of Employment and Labor in detail about the reduction rate in fatal industrial accidents, then received a report that industrial accidents at businesses with fewer than 50 employees had fallen significantly. He offered encouragement, saying that results were bound to follow when the government managed the issue intensively.
Regarding the decline in deaths by suicide, Lee urged further efforts to bring the number down to the OECD average. In response to the prime minister’s report that local government heads’ attention was also important, he called for consideration of various incentives for local governments to further boost the reduction.
Lee also reviewed the status of the Arctic route’s trial voyage. He asked when the vessel currently operating on the route would return and was told it would be on the 12th. He instructed officials to pay attention to the project, as it could offer great hope for Busan’s future.
[email protected] Seong Seok-woo Reporter