Yoon to endorse U.S-led IPEF during his summit with Biden

[Photo by Lee Seung-hwan]

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol is expected to make South Korea’s joining of the U.S.-led Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) official when U.S. President Joe Biden visits Seoul this week and join the inaugural summit in Japan via videoconference.

According to the Presidential Office on Wednesday, Yoon will express his endorsement and participation in the IPEF during his first summit meeting with Biden in Seoul on Saturday.

President Biden is set to travel to South Korea and Japan where he is expected to unveil the details of the U.S.-led economic framework. Yoon is due to join the IPEF summit online next Tuesday.

The IPEF first unveiled by Biden during the East Asia Summit (EAS) last October seeks an inclusive and flexible economic network in the Indo-Pacific region to reduce supply chain vulnerability and drive investments.

Experts say there may be changes in South Korea’s overall trade policies depending on the outcome of the ROK-U.S. summit as the IPEF is regarded as an initiative to maintain U.S. economic leadership and credibility in the Indo-Pacific against the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), a free trade agreement (FTA) framework led by China in the region.

During a video conference between foreign ministers of South Korea and China on Monday, Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said that China and South Korea should proceed from their respective and common interests, oppose the negative tendency of “decoupling” and maintain the stability and smoothness of the global industrial chain and supply chain.

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