▲ South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok (4th from L) poses for a photo with U.S. lawmakers and others on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 22, 2026, in this photo provided by the Prime Minister's Office. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
▲ South Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok places a wreath during a visit to the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 22, 2026, to pay tribute to American soldiers killed in action during the 1950-53 conflict, in this photo provided by the Prime Minister's Office. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

(LEAD) PM-Coupang

(LEAD) PM says there is 'no discrimination' against Coupang amid arbitration claim

(ATTN: UPDATES with more details; ADDS photo)

By Lee Haye-ah

SEOUL, Jan. 23 (Yonhap) -- Prime Minister Kim Min-seok has said South Korea is not discriminating against the U.S.-listed e-commerce giant Coupang Inc. in investigating a massive data leak at the company, as two U.S. investors have stated plans to bring arbitration claims against Seoul.

Kim made the remark during a meeting with U.S. lawmakers in Washington on Thursday (local time) as part of a five-day trip to the U.S., according to his office.

"There is no discrimination against Coupang whatsoever, and the South Korea-U.S. relationship is such a trusting relationship that there is no need to worry about discriminatory treatment," he was quoted as saying.

Kim's remark in response to a question from some lawmakers about the South Korean government's response to the Coupang issue came as two U.S. investors in the company -- Greenoaks Capital Partners and Altimeter Capital Management -- notified Seoul of their intent to bring arbitration claims against it.

They said the South Korean government's enforcement actions against Coupang increased as it took a growing market share from domestic and Chinese competitors in South Korea, resulting in "more penalties against Coupang than any other company in Korean history."

They also accused the South Korean government of "targeted and hostile interference" and making "false and defamatory" claims in response to the data breach, which was revealed in November and believed to have affected 33.7 million customers, according to an early Coupang estimate.

The investors separately requested that Washington investigate Seoul's "unreasonable" and "discriminatory" acts against Coupang and impose "appropriate" trade remedies.

Kim drew a parallel between the Coupang incident and last September's surprise detention of hundreds of South Korean workers in the U.S. state of Georgia.

"South Korea does not think the Georgia incident was a discrimination case resulting from the fact they were South Korean workers," he was quoted as saying.

"In the same way, the actions were not taken because Coupang is a U.S. company, and we are not discriminating against them at all."

The prime minister voiced hope that his visit, the first solo trip to the U.S. by any South Korean premier since the country's democratization in 1987, will serve to develop the allies' relations in a more stable and continuous manner, including through the swift implementation of follow-up measures to a bilateral trade deal reached in November.

The lawmakers, who included Reps. Young Kim (R-CA), Ami Bera (D-CA) and Joe Wilson (R-SC), stressed the U.S. Congress' bipartisan support for the alliance and expressed their wish to strengthen cooperation on critical mineral supply chains, shipbuilding and other areas while also expanding trilateral cooperation with Japan.

Later in the day, the prime minister placed a wreath at the Korean War Veterans Memorial, met with a group of American young people to talk about Korean pop culture and then with Korean residents in the Washington area.

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