South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and U.S. President Donald Trump did not discuss the possibility of 'additional opening of agricultural and livestock markets' during their summit on the 25th (local time) in Washington, D.C., but the possibility remains that it will come up as a future negotiation agenda. The agreement document for the South Korea-U.S. trade negotiations has not yet been finalized, and the U.S. is still demanding 'additional opening' behind the scenes even after the trade agreement. This suggests that if the U.S. makes such claims in the practical discussions for drafting the agreement document, the issue of agricultural and livestock products could be reignited.
Spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said during a briefing at the press center in Washington, D.C., after the South Korea-U.S. summit that '(the topic of agricultural products) did not come up at all' during this meeting. According to Spokesperson Kang, the summit took place in a cordial atmosphere, with specific issues passed on to working-level meetings.
Spokesperson Kang noted, 'It was not a venue to discuss specific figures or contents; it was a place where the two presidents were able to build trust and goodwill.' She added that President Trump merely reiterated his previous comments, saying, 'I will seek Korea's help to revive the shipbuilding industry,' and that all other matters were left to be discussed with Secretary Ross.
However, internal assessments from the Presidential Office indicate that it is too early to assert that the existing agreement of 'no additional opening of agricultural and livestock products' will remain unchanged. Although the issue of additional opening for agricultural products was not addressed in this summit, there has been no firm assurance from the U.S. side that it will not demand further opening. Moreover, Secretary Ross attended a 'South Korea-U.S. Business Roundtable' held at a hotel in Washington, D.C., where he stated, 'The U.S. wants market opening' and 'We will continue to carve out markets for our farmers, manufacturers, and innovators.'
If the U.S. side, which has a strong willingness for additional opening of agricultural markets, reiterates this demand during further working-level discussions, it will be an unavoidable situation for discussion. There are even reports from within the Presidential Office that 'we cannot stop the U.S. from bringing it up again.' In this context, Chief of Staff Kang Hoon remarked, 'Trade and security negotiations during the Trump era will continue to be discussed endlessly,' and added, 'It doesn't mean that once something is finalized, it's over; rather, it signifies that we are in an ongoing negotiation process.'
Currently, South Korea and the U.S. are conducting practical discussions based on the 'South Korea-U.S. Trade Agreement' finalized on the 30th of last month. This summit also mentioned practical conversations, and the leaders urged their teams to 'carry out the discussions well.'
Kim Yong-beom, who attended the summit, said during a media briefing that 'the stabilization of the July 30 trade agreement has occurred for the two leaders,' and added, 'Since the two leaders confirmed the (trade) agreement once more and it has stabilized, it seems that future work (such as soliciting expert opinions) can be done publicly.' However, it was conveyed that 'stabilization' means respecting the July 30 trade agreement by both countries, but it is not yet at a stage where it is perceived that practical discussions have been completed.