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| ▲ Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan speaks at a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office in central Seoul on July 22, 2025. (Pool photo) (Yonhap) |
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| ▲ This illustrated image depicts U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff policy. (Yonhap) |
industry minister-US visit
New industry minister to visit U.S. this week for tariff negotiations
SEOUL, July 22 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's new industry minister will visit Washington this week for tariff talks with the Donald Trump administration, his office said Tuesday, as Seoul goes all out to strike a trade deal with the United States before the Aug. 1 deadline.
Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan, who was officially appointed the previous day, will depart for the U.S. capital on Wednesday to meet with senior U.S. trade officials, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.
Kim is among many high-level South Korean officials visiting or scheduled to visit Washington this week for trade talks.
With just over a week left until the planned imposition of U.S. reciprocal tariffs starting Aug. 1, Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol and Trade Minister Yeo Han-koo are set to hold "2+2" high-level talks with U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer on Friday (local time) in Washington.
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun is also arranging a visit to the U.S. to meet with his counterpart, Marco Rubio, this week, according to government officials.
National Security Adviser Wi Sung-lac reportedly headed to Washington on Sunday to engage with his U.S. counterparts in tariff negotiations.
The flurry of visits by senior Korean government officials to the U.S. reflects the urgency of the looming deadline for tariff talks with the Trump administration.
South Korea has been negotiating with the U.S. on a wide range of trade issues for months, seeking full exemption or reduction of the planned 25 percent reciprocal tariffs for the country and sectoral tariffs imposed on all steel and automobile imports by the Trump administration.
Items on the negotiating table are said to include Seoul's import ban on American beef from cattle aged 30 months or older, proposed online platform regulations and restrictions on the export of high-precision map data.
In an interview with CBS earlier this week, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Aug. 1 is a "hard deadline" for Washington's reciprocal tariffs, emphasizing that the new tariffs would go into effect as scheduled. However, he added that "nothing stops countries from talking to us after Aug. 1."
The reciprocal tariffs were initially supposed to take effect on July 8, following a 90-day suspension, but Trump extended the deadline to Aug. 1 to allow more time for negotiations.
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