The United States has officially reached out to the South Korean shipbuilding industry to inquire about its capabilities in designing and constructing naval vessels.

According to the defense industry on July 8, it has been confirmed that the U.S. Department of Defense and the U.S. Navy recently sent Requests for Information (RFI) to South Korean shipbuilders regarding warships and oil tankers, respectively.

This marks the first time the U.S. has formally inquired about the naval capabilities of South Korean shipyards through the RFI process since discussions on U.S.-Korea shipbuilding cooperation began following the inauguration of President Donald Trump.

Under the U.S. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), an RFI is a procedure used by the government to gather information on pricing, delivery terms, and other market data for planning purposes.

It is reported that HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hanwha Ocean, the two major South Korean players in the specialized vessel sector, submitted their warship design and construction capabilities to the U.S. Department of Defense last month.

For the U.S. Navy's RFI regarding medium-sized oil tankers, three companies—the two aforementioned firms plus Samsung Heavy Industries—responded.

A defense industry official stated, "We responded to the U.S. request by comprehensively detailing our shipyard capabilities, including construction track records, design personnel and expertise, and annual production capacity."

There is also speculation that the responses may have included details on the cooperation projects the three companies are pursuing in the U.S.

Hanwha has acquired the Philly Shipyard in Pennsylvania and is currently in the process of obtaining licenses to build warships.

HD Hyundai and Samsung Heavy Industries have established cooperative relationships with local shipbuilders, such as Huntington Ingalls Industries and General Dynamics NASSCO, respectively.

The RFI process is particularly noteworthy as it coincides with recent remarks by President Trump regarding specific numbers for warship construction.

President Lee Jae-myung previously stated that during a meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit last month, President Trump asked, "Can you quickly build 10 U.S. warships?"

This suggests that the U.S. may have moved beyond high-level presidential messaging to concrete working-level reviews by the Department of Defense and the Navy.

Last year, South Korea and the U.S. agreed to allocate 150 billion dollars toward shipbuilding cooperation out of a total 350 billion dollars in planned investments in the U.S.

There is cautious optimism that moves to ease U.S. regulations related to naval vessels may gain momentum.

Currently, the construction of U.S. naval vessels at overseas shipyards is effectively blocked by the Vinson-Trammell Act.

A defense industry official explained, "The U.S. Department of Defense is in the stage of reviewing how to resolve local regulatory issues and conducting research-like assessments to reflect this in next year's budget," adding, "They are currently identifying which companies have potential for future cooperation."