South Korea to Explain Coupang Fine to US to Prevent Diplomatic Row

The South Korean government plans to explain its fine on Coupang to the US government to prevent the issue from becoming a diplomatic conflict between the two countries.

A Ministry of Foreign Affairs official told reporters on the 11th, "The government will maintain a non-discriminatory policy towards US digital companies, including Coupang, and will calmly explain the results of the Personal Information Protection Commission's disposition of Coupang to the US side."

The official said, "The Personal Information Protection Commission conducted a fair investigation in accordance with the procedures stipulated in domestic law, based on the principle of imposing a penalty commensurate with responsibility," adding, "I understand that Coupang was given an opportunity to fully express its opinions during the investigation."

On this day, the Personal Information Protection Commission imposed a total fine of 624.7 billion won on Coupang, stating that it had leaked personal information of 37.5 million people and illegally collected members' online activity records without legal basis.

The government's position is that this fine is a legitimate legal action against a company responsible for personal information leakage, but in diplomatic circles, it is considered that the possibility of the US Trump administration or Congress raising issues with the fine cannot be ruled out.

In the past, some in the US government and Congress have claimed that the South Korean government 'discriminated' against US companies by investigating Coupang with unprecedented intensity. Groundless claims have also emerged that the South Korean government, being pro-China, launched a 'kill Coupang' campaign to help Chinese platform companies.

The US government and Congress have always been sensitive to regulations targeting their digital companies in other countries, and in particular, they have raised issues more strongly against the South Korean government as Coupang has engaged in intensive lobbying activities.

In addition to Coupang, US dissatisfaction has been accumulating over trade issues, such as the US investment promised by the South Korean government, which led to the recent resumption of consultations on nuclear cooperation between South Korea and the US, such as nuclear-powered submarines, after several months of delay.

The government has been contacting the US government and Congress to explain its position on Coupang's personal information leakage and to resolve any misunderstandings.

According to diplomatic officials, while US dissatisfaction regarding Coupang has not completely disappeared, the US government also shares the perception that both sides should work together to manage the issue so that it does not negatively affect the overall South Korea-US relationship.

During a hearing of the US House Foreign Affairs Committee on the 3rd, when Representative Darrell Issa raised the Coupang issue, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that he was also addressing the issue of unfair treatment targeting US tech companies in discussions with South Korea.

The key will be how seriously the US government views this fine imposition and whether it will go to lengths to 'save Coupang' by sacrificing progress on major pending issues between South Korea and the US, including the recently resumed nuclear cooperation consultations.

US online media Semafor reported on the 11th that due to Coupang's lobbying, Trump administration officials and Republican lawmakers are actively supporting Coupang.

According to the report, Jamieson Greer, a US Trade Representative (USTR) official, is directly working to find ways to resolve Coupang's concerns, and Trump administration aides have said that trade agreement (implementation) with South Korea will continue to be delayed as long as the Coupang issue is not resolved.

An American official told Semafor, "The US government has ongoing concerns with South Korea regarding regulations and law enforcement targeting or discriminating against US technology companies, including Coupang."