A total of 54 Republican lawmakers sent a letter to the South Korean Ambassador, urging an end to what they described as "targeted and discriminatory actions against U.S. companies" including Coupang.
[SBS Exclusive] The arbitration talks between Korea’s Justice Ministry and Coupang’s U.S. investors, following the investors’ ISDS notice of intent, have effectively collapsed within the deadline. The investors reportedly requested the lifting of various administrative measures imposed on Coupang.
[SBS News Exclusive] The U.S. has conveyed to South Korea that high-level consultations would be difficult unless Coupang Chairman Bom Kim’s legal security is guaranteed. This pulls a private company matter into the diplomatic and security realm, and Seoul is understood to have effectively declined.
At a US House Appropriations Committee hearing on the FY2027 budget, USTR Greer responded to Rep. Cline’s concerns over South Korea’s digital trade policies. Cline called Seoul’s approach discriminatory; Greer said the US is holding Korea accountable and flagged Section 301 as an option if needed.
"Regardless of what these deals [Trump administration’s reciprocal trade agreements] may achieve, however, they and other bilateral and regional deals do not address the issue of trade remedies. For that, the WTO remains the only game in town."
South Korea's amended Network Act – modeled on the EU's DSA – takes effect in July, but Washington is pushing back, viewing it as a potential threat to free speech and an undue burden on American tech companies, notably YouTube. In my new Korea Tech & Trade Watch analysis, I unpack what's at stake.
"What does it look like when MAGA-esque politics take root abroad, particularly among young people on the right? That experiment is now playing out in South Korea."
As the USTR's Sec 301 investigation premised on "discrimination against U.S. technology companies and digital goods and services" looms, this NTE report is likely to serve as the basis for that investigation and any subsequent trade measures, or as leverage in Washington's negotiations with Seoul.
Issues listed in the order they appear in the NTE report:
* Cloud Security Certification for Public Sector Cloud Service Procurement: koreattw.substack.com/p/south-kore...
With this year’s USTR NTE report out, I’m resurfacing my Korea Tech & Trade Watch analyses below on Korea’s digital trade barriers flagged in the report, including the newly added Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure Procurement challenging the Lee administration’s sovereign AI initiative.
"Another diplomat said that U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer made delegates 'uncomfortable' as he suggested there 'would be consequences' if the U.S. did not get a long-term extension to the moratorium."
"Talks would now continue in Geneva after the impasse on prolonging the moratorium, said the WTO conference chair... In what is seen as a test for the WTO’s relevance... diplomats said ministers got stuck on extending the moratorium beyond more than two years following objections from Brazil."
"... US officials have linked any extension of the moratorium to their agreement on the broader WTO reform workplan... A shorter, two-year moratorium deal could prompt Washington to withhold its support for the work plan — a move that risked derailing talks entirely..."
“Working on the sidelines of a WTO summit in Cameroon, the EU and 12-nation CPTPP bloc — which includes the U.K. and Canada — have resolved to launch talks on a deal that would set rules for how digital services trade flows, how electronic contracts are signed and how data is stored and governed.”
This is a classic example of what Korean tech companies have long complained about — favorable treatment for U.S. tech companies and reverse discrimination against domestic ones. If Samsung Pay is a "public good," why isn't Apple Pay held to the same standard in Seoul?
"The added safeguards include a sunrise clause... conditional on Washington honouring its side of the bargain, a sunset clause... expire on March 31, 2028, and a clause to suspend the deal if Washington breaches the terms... or if there is a damaging surge of U.S. imports."
"Parliament's vote on Thurs is not the end of the process. Reps of parliament and EU governments will negotiate final texts, starting on Apr 13, ahead of a final vote of approval by EU lawmakers not expected before June. EU governments approved the legislation in Nov with more limited safeguards."
"The safeguards include a potential suspension clause, among others, and lawmakers insist the U.S. remove 50% duties imposed a month after the Turnberry deal on the steel and aluminium content of products such as wind turbines and motorcycles."
Even after South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol was removed from office and sentenced to life over his martial law declaration, his supporters in Seoul seem encouraged that former PM Hwang Kyo-ahn may amplify election fraud claims in Korea — a political headache for Lee Jae Myung’s administration.
60 Minutes summary: The U.S. wants more ships built at home, but is making it harder to train new workers and pricier to build them in America.
US-Japan Summit D-1: "Now Ms. Takaichi faces the delicate task of finding a way to signal support for Mr. Trump without getting entangled in the war. She must do so in the high pressure forum of the White House, over lunch and dinner with a president who seems increasingly impatient and aggrieved."
EU digital regulations get most of the attention, but South Korea is very active here as well, and @haeyoonkim.bsky.social is the one to read to find out what’s actually going on with these regulations. Here's her latest on public sector cloud rules and US claims of "discrimination."
