South Korean leaders rosy about U.S. relationship

Ambassador Cho Yoon-je told the U.S. Chamber of Commerce that talks to update the free trade agreement built bilateral trust.    Trust between the United States and South Korea is now deeper than it was before the two countries’ recent talks to revamp their bilateral free trade agreement, KORUS, and there is a potential for greater cooperation on trade in energy and the Internet of Things, Korean leaders said during a Tuesday event on U.S.-South Korea trade at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
   “The deal we reached on the trade and economic side paves the way for successful cooperation for the two nations on the security side,” South Korean Ambassador to the U.S. Cho Yoon-je said during the event jointly hosted by the Chamber and the Korea International Trade Association (KITA).
   Cho added that the KORUS deal in principle reached last month reflects the interests of both member states and that his embassy in Washington is “always ready to hear from and support you.”
   Among other things, the United States and South Korea agreed to extend the 25 percent U.S. tariff on trucks imported under the deal through 2041 as well as greater provide market access for U.S. automobile exports and set an import quota in lieu of national security tariffs on steel and aluminum imported from South Korea, which apply to most other countries.
   KITA CEO Young Ju Kim called for bilateral work toward “a new and mutually beneficial framework for industrial cooperation” to build upon progress reached through KORUS talks, noting the recent growth of U.S. energy exports to Korea.
   By quantity, liquefied natural gas recently has been among the fastest growing U.S. energy exports to South Korea, as Korea imported over 10 times more LNG from the United States in 2017 — about 0.35 billion cubic feet per day —than in 2016, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration statistics.
   Young also pointed to the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and standard-setting for core technologies as promising areas for cooperation.
   “By strengthening cooperation in these cutting-edge fields, our industrial competitiveness will be enhanced,” he said.