FT "U.S. dissatisfaction grows over delay in Korea's $350 billion investment in the U.S."

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Seung-wook = The British daily Financial Times (FT) reported on the 9th (local time) that the United States' dissatisfaction with the lack of specific execution of funds is growing even one year after the Korean government agreed with the United States to invest $350 billion (about 470 trillion won) in investments in the United States.

An American source told the FT that “the Korean government needs to speed up” or face backlash from President Donald Trump.

Another source said that President Trump's recent public criticism of Korea's lack of support for the Iran war also contributed to his dissatisfaction with the delay in investment.

Jennifer Lee, a partner at Asia Group, an American consulting firm, said, "Unlike Japan's successive announcements of large-scale investments, Korea's progress is slow and dissatisfaction is building within the U.S. government."

South Korea's investment promise was part of last year's trade agreement with the United States. At that time, instead of lowering the tariff that the United States was planning to impose on Korean products from 25% to 15%, Korea decided to invest a total of $350 billion in the United States.

Currently, the construction of Texas gas-fired power plants and nuclear power plants are being considered as strong investment candidates.

Regarding investments in the United States, the FT pointed out that the Korean government places the feasibility of the project as its top priority.

Min Jeong-hoon, a professor at the National Diplomatic Academy, explained, "Companies cannot invest in uneconomic projects, so the government has no choice but to be cautious. On the other hand, President Trump wants quick results, so the positions of the two sides are conflicting."

The newspaper pointed out that the cautious attitude of Korean companies was influenced by the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) crackdown on the joint battery factory of Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solutions in Georgia, U.S., in September last year.

It is said that the crackdown by US immigration authorities has made Korean companies hesitant to invest in the US.

However, the FT reported that the technological prowess of the Korean shipbuilding industry, which boasts the world's second largest shipbuilding volume, is considered one of the few bargaining chips that Korea can have in conjunction with the Trump administration's plan to revive the U.S. shipbuilding industry.

Experts are concerned that the delay in announcing the investment could give the U.S. government the perception that it is trying to avoid implementing the agreement. In particular, the pressure is expected to intensify as President Trump is expected to present the achievement of attracting investment to the United States ahead of the midterm elections in November.

The FT said, “The issue of Korea’s investment in the U.S. is complexly intertwined with other security issues in the ROK-U.S. relationship,” and mentioned President Trump’s order to scale back the joint ROK-U.S. exercise “Ulchi Shield of Freedom” (UFS).

Ramon Pacheco Pardo, a professor at King's College London, predicted that in order to increase his negotiating power, President Trump may reverse last year's agreement with the United States to support Korea's plan to secure nuclear-powered submarines or pull out the card of withdrawing U.S. troops from Korea.

He predicted, “The foundation of the ROK-US alliance is strong, but due to President Trump’s view on the alliance, the ROK-US relationship may be unstable during his term in office.”