▲ Newly appointed Trade Minister Park Jung-sung of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy
Park Jung-sung, the newly appointed Deputy Minister for Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, expressed his determination today (the 24th) to create a new framework for cooperation through investment negotiations with the United States.
During his inaugural ceremony held at the Government Complex-Sejong this morning, Chief Park stated, "The implementation of strategic investments between South Korea and the U.S. has emerged as both the greatest challenge and opportunity in bilateral relations." He added, "Through strategic investment consultations, we will shape a new framework for bilateral cooperation comparable to the past South Korea-U.S. Free Trade Agreement (FTA)."
He further emphasized, "We must concentrate all our efforts to produce the right outcomes from the strategic investment consultations."
Explaining that tariff restructuring and the internalization of strategic industries triggered by the U.S. are signaling a reorganization of the trade order, Park urged, "We must exert company-wide efforts to manage trade risks between South Korea and the U.S."
Park continued, "If securing irreplaceable industries and technologies is the core of industrial policy, creating the space to realize this within the global supply chain is the core of trade policy."
Noting that South Korea simultaneously receives various forms of international containment and requests for cooperation while maintaining competitiveness in sectors such as semiconductors, nuclear energy, and shipbuilding, he evaluated, "As a stakeholder with a stake, we have reached a position where we can confidently make our voices heard in shaping a new trade order."
He added, "To solidify this standing, we need to proactively discover and lead trade negotiation agendas."
He also emphasized the need for a trade strategy to strengthen economic security.
Park stated, "We must steadily implement diversification policies," adding, "Diversification is required for both the markets where we procure resources and the markets where we export products, which is an essential requirement for economic security."
He further noted, "We need to newly reorganize trade strategies for essential resource sectors such as food and critical minerals, which have relatively received less spotlight in the past trade order."
Having overseen practical operations regarding U.S. tariffs and investment negotiations through previous positions including working-level chief representative of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's U.S. Tariff Negotiation Task Force (TF), head of the Trade and Investment Office, and Deputy Minister for Trade, he was appointed as the new trade chief on the 21st.
(Photo provided by the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Yonhap News)
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