On the 25th (local time), U.S. President Donald Trump, stressing that under the U.S.-Korea trade deal Korea would invest $350 billion (about 490 trillion won) in the United States, said, "That is up front." With the two sides showing differences over how to structure the investment in the United States, the remarks are seen as pressure on Korea.
After signing an executive order at the White House that related to the agreement on the Chinese video platform TikTok, President Trump said, "We were never treated properly by other countries, but now we are doing well. We have never done this well," announcing this.
He went on, "Thanks to the tariff and trade deal, in one case we secured $950 billion, an amount that had never been paid before," adding, "As you know, from Japan we get $550 billion, and from Korea we get $350 billion. This is up front." The $950 billion figure is seen as referring to the European Union (EU) case.
At present, regarding the $350 billion investment in the United States, Korea's position is to minimize equity investment and cover most of it with loans and guarantees. The United States, however, argues that the cash dollars should be received from Korea via equity investment, that the United States should decide where to invest, and that the United States should take 90% of the investment returns. Korea, noting that providing the U.S. investment funds as the United States demands would impose significant foreign-exchange risk, is calling for a Korea-U.S. currency swap agreement.