Korea, U.S. agree to expand cooperation in APEC sideline talks

The trade representatives of Korea and the United States agreed to expand the number of areas of cooperation from four to six as a result of the negotiations on Friday, but with currency policy absent.

Minister of Industry Ahn Duk-geun, right, and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, left, shake hands during a meeting at the Jeju International Convention Center in Jeju on May 16. [NEWS1]

The trade representatives of Korea and the United States agreed to expand the number of areas of cooperation from four to six as a result of the negotiations on Friday, but with currency policy absent.

Minister of Industry Ahn Duk-geun and U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) Jamieson Greer met in the afternoon at the Jeju International Convention Center on the sidelines of a ministerial meeting of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) countries in Jeju.

In what the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy described as "a dramatic consensus that came in hopes of finding the common language for APEC cooperation to navigate through global trade uncertainties together," the two countries agreed to draw up the specifics of cooperation in six sectors for the so-called July Package deal: balanced trade, nontariff measures, economic security, digital trade, country of origin and commercial considerations.

In previous negotiations held in Washington last month, Korea and the United States agreed to work on four sectors — tariff and nontariff measures, economic security, investment cooperation and currency policy.

The White House earlier expressed intent to address the steeply depreciating Korean currency.

“Greer and I agreed to hold the second round of technical consultations next week,” Ahn said, speaking at a press briefing after the meeting. “A delegation from the ministry and related agencies will visit the United States to conduct formal negotiations with the U.S. government in six key areas.”

During the “Korea-U.S. 2+2” high-level trade talks held in Washington on April 24, both governments agreed to aim for a comprehensive agreement by July 8, when the U.S. reciprocal tariff suspension is set to expire.

Following that meeting, the two countries established around six working-level task forces to discuss detailed issues within each area.

Korean and U.S. trade officials including Minister of Industry Ahn Duk-geun and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer are seen during a meeting at the Jeju International Convention Center in Jeju on May 16. [NEWS1]

The first round of technical consultations, held on May 1 in Washington, involved director-level officials from both sides. However, due to the USTR’s simultaneous tariff negotiations with 18 countries, it had limited capacity to engage in more detailed discussions with Korea. As a result, talks had yet to move into specific agenda-setting stages.

With the second round of consultations scheduled for next week, observers expect discussions to enter a more concrete phase, with the United States likely to present more detailed demands to Korea.

Ahn also reiterated Seoul's position, requesting a complete exemption from both reciprocal and item-specific tariffs on Korean goods.

The two sides also agreed to hold the second technical discussion next week and begin full-scale discussions on six areas.

"Even under the acting system, we are working closely with relevant ministries to establish our specific position, and based on this, we are continuously requesting exemption from all reciprocal tariffs and tariffs on our items,” Ahn said. “Our government will actively negotiate with the United States to establish a mutually beneficial solution by prioritizing national interests."

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]