The presidential office said on the 9th (local time) that it believes the United States is not ruling out the option of building warships in Korea in connection with U.S. President Donald Trump's request for warship construction.
A senior official at the presidential office met with reporters at a press center set up in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, and said, "We have the impression that the U.S. side is not ruling out construction in Korea," adding, "U.S. law covers warships, naval support ships, and vessels that support the merchant-marine branch of the military, and the legal provisions applied differ somewhat by ship type, so we need to review them."
The senior presidential official said, "The conversation between the two leaders was not detailed or systematic," adding, "As we hold working-level consultations, we need to make it more specific and identify and fill in the gaps we do not know."
Regarding the Jones Act and the Burns-Tollefson Amendment, which regulate U.S. vessels including warships, the official said, "There will be issues over how to bypass or resolve the current law."
The official added, "In that respect, there may be room for the president to grant a waiver, and there will be various methods, but we need to figure out which approach is being proposed."
The official said, "From our perspective, (warship construction) is important cooperation," adding, "Korea has high-level shipbuilding capabilities, there are areas where Korea and the United States need to invest, and there is also MASGA, so we plan to combine various elements to deliver cooperation that meets expectations."
The official continued, "If that happens, coordination between allies will be strengthened," adding, "Investment in the United States could proceed smoothly, and there could be economic benefits."
On the 7th (local time), President Lee Jae-myung and President Trump met at the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) summit dinner in Ankara, Türkiye, and held follow-up discussions on building U.S. warships.