The ruling and opposition parties are trading blame over President Donald Trump's declaration to raise the tariff. As related ministries, including the Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources, delivered reports throughout the day, the parties remain split over how to handle the special act on investment in the United States.
◇National Assembly finance and industry committees receive emergency briefings
On the 27th (Korea time), President Donald Trump wrote on his social media platform Truth Social, "The Korean National Assembly is not implementing a historic trade agreement," and declared, "I will raise the tariff on Korean automobiles, lumber, and pharmaceuticals from 15% to 25%."
Amid the "second round of Trump-led tariff bombs," the National Assembly was busy all day. The Democratic Party of Korea held a party-government meeting with the Ministry of Strategy and Finance in the morning. Koo Yun-cheol, Deputy Prime Minister for the Economy and Minister of Strategy and Finance, also met in the afternoon with Han Jeong-ae, the Democratic Party policy committee chair, and Lim Lee-ja of the People Power Party, the National Assembly Strategy and Finance Committee Chairperson.
Chairperson Lim Lee-ja said, "Whether we proceed with ratification consent or with a special law, the ruling and opposition parties need to put their heads together," and added, "If the public's right to know can be met, we will put the national interest first without being bound by formality."
The National Assembly Trade, Industry, Energy, SMEs, and Startups Committee also received a related briefing from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources in the afternoon. From the ministry, Yeo Han-koo, head of the Office of the Minister for Trade, and Moon Shin-hak, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, attended, while People Power Party member Lee Cheol-gyu, the committee Chairperson, and Park Sung-min, the opposition secretary on the industry committee, received the report.
At the meeting, Deputy Minister Yeo said, "Regarding President Trump's early-morning social media post raising the tariff to 25%, related ministries gathered at the Blue House in the morning to discuss countermeasures, and the government is still determining the exact background and next steps."
The National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee is also expected to take up the issue as a key agenda item at its full meeting on the 28th.
◇Democrats: "PPP is obstructing"; PPP: "Ratification is needed"
The ruling and opposition parties traded blame over President Trump's tariff hike remarks. The Democratic Party said the handling of the special act on investment in the United States is being delayed because the People Power Party is demanding National Assembly ratification.
Democratic Party lawmakers on the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee issued a statement saying, "The ratification the People Power Party insists on is no different from 'crafting a rule and being snared by it,'" and argued, "Japan, which reached a tariff deal with the United States last year, did not go through National Diet ratification, and the United States also had no procedure like National Assembly ratification."
In the statement, they said, "When the United States does not ratify, having Korea alone ratify and elevate it to a more binding treaty is like tying our own feet in a footrace."
Han Jeong-ae, the Democratic Party policy committee chair, also said, "We are clear that this is not subject to ratification, and the two countries made a declaration and found it does not violate legal procedures," adding, "Because it is an enactment law that requires a public hearing, it could at the earliest pass in late February or early March."
The People Power Party, by contrast, raised its voice that the measure should go through National Assembly ratification rather than enactment of a special act on investment in the United States. Floor leader Song Eon-seog said, "On the South Korea–U.S. tariff agreement, our party has repeatedly emphasized that 'National Assembly ratification consent comes first,'" adding, "This situation starkly shows how precariously the South Korea–U.S. tariff agreement—so lavishly self-praised by the Lee Jae-myung administration as a success—has been positioned."
Chief spokesperson for the floor, Choi Su-jin, also said, "The essence of the problem is the Lee Jae-myung administration's backroom diplomacy and the irresponsibility of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea," and stressed, "For the National Assembly to approve the trade agreement and investment in the United States, the substantive contents of the agreement and the budget sheet detailing fiscal burdens must first be disclosed."