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"It's not yet the stage to say whether the 'Louisiana Project' will be the first investment."
"Efforts to keep tariffs after U.S. Trade Act Section 301 investigation within the scope of restoring the old mutual tariff of 15%"
Kim Jung-kwan, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, who visited the United States, announced on the 6th (local time) that South Korea's first investment in the U.S. under the Korea-U.S. trade agreement would be announced after June.
Minister Kim met with reporters at Dulles International Airport near Washington D.C. on the same day and, when asked about the timing of the announcement of the 'first investment in the U.S.', replied, "For specific projects, the law (Special Act on Investment in the U.S.) will take effect after June, so we can talk about such things after the law is implemented."
The Special Act on Investment in the U.S. (Special Act for Korea-U.S. Strategic Investment Management), which passed the National Assembly on March 12, will take effect on the 18th of next month.
When asked whether the liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal construction project in Louisiana, U.S., was being considered as the first investment, Minister Kim replied, "It is true that the Louisiana project was (under consideration), but it is not yet at a stage where we can say whether it will be the first."
When asked if the implementation of investment in the U.S. was being delayed compared to Japan, Minister Kim said, "I don't think the investment is being delayed because the procedures are currently being closely discussed between working-level officials, but there is a part where our start itself was later than Japan's."
He added, "A specific project is not something that happens just because it's announced; it needs to be concretely implemented," and "I'm not sure if (South Korea) can truly be said to be later than Japan."
Regarding the Section 301 investigation under the U.S. Trade Act that the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) is conducting against South Korea, Japan, and others, Minister Kim stated that its purpose is "understood to be restoring the 15% (mutual tariffs that were ruled illegal)," and that the U.S. measures based on the investigation results "will likely be within that scope. We will do our best to ensure they remain within that scope."
He also anticipated that during his visit to the U.S., there "might be an appropriate opportunity to discuss" the Section 301 investigation with the Donald Trump administration.
The previous day, Minister Kim visited Ottawa, Canada, met with Melanie Joly, Minister of Industry, and Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, to request the Canadian government's interest and support for winning the Canadian submarine project, and then moved to Washington.
In Washington, Minister Kim is scheduled to hold preliminary consultations on Korea-U.S. strategic investment with key government officials from the Trump administration, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, and to contact federal congressional figures regarding investment in the U.S. and trade issues.
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