S. Korea "will not fight" U.S. over tariffs but will put nat'l interests first as top officials meet in D.C. on Thursday

Top finance and trade officials are sitting down with their U.S. counterparts in Washington D.C. later this week for tariff talks and acting President Han Duck-soo says the strategy is dialogue not dispute.

Our correspondent Oh Soo-young explains.

South Korea will not fight the United States over Donald Trump's tariffs

But it will also seek national interest first, as top trade officials meet in Washington this Thursday.

That's according to Acting President Han Duck-soo, who on Monday confirmed South Korea's finance and trade ministers will meet their U.S. counterparts for a "2+2" consultation.

On Thursday, 8 AM local time or 9 PM in South Korea Choi Sang-mok and Ahn Duk-geun will sit down with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on the sidelines of the IMF–World Bank Spring Meetings.

This will be followed by separate one-on-one meetings between the ministers.

The bilateral was first proposed by the U.S., after the Trump Administration decided to delay its reciprocal tariffs, including a 25-percent duty on South Korean goods.

The wide-ranging tariffs were paused for 90 days, after panic in U.S markets, wiped out five-point-four trillion dollars in just 48 hours.

Shortly before implementing the pause on April 9th, the U.S. President held a half-hour phone call with Acting President Han Duck-soo, and ordered officials to prioritize deals with allied countries like South Korea and Japan, projecting optimism that a "great deal" could be made.

Han told government officials Monday that the talks "won't be easy," but he expects it will mark the beginning of cooperation.

"With the principle of putting our national interests first, the government will approach the consultations with the U.S. calmly and earnestly, doing our utmost to find a mutually beneficial win-win solution. We will specifically confirm each side's interests regarding the three key areas mentioned during my phone call with President Trump: trade balance, 무역 균형, shipbuilding, 조선, and LNG, 그리고 LNG, and seek mutually reciprocal points of agreement.

In interviews with foreign media, Han has said Seoul would not fight the U.S., but hinted there could be concessions, for a win-win deal between the long-term allies.

He suggested South Korea could increase purchases of U.S. liquefied natural gas and commercial aircraft.

Korean shipyards could also help America maintain its naval shipbuilding capacity.

Seoul could further discuss non-tariff barriers, addressing existing U.S. concerns about auto emissions regulations, pharmaceutical pricing, beef imports, and network fees imposed on platforms like Netflix.

It's unclear whether the cost of keeping U.S. soldiers in South Korea will be raised during the session.

While Trump has indicated he'd like a "one-stop shopping" deal combining trade and defense issues into a single package, Seoul officials are prioritizing trade talks to tackle tariffs, keeping security matters separate.

The government has described the meeting as a "consultation," not a "negotiation," signaling a measured approach.

On whether the U.S. leader might appear at the meeting in person, as he did unexpectedly during talks with Japan last week, South Korea's trade minister said Sunday that Seoul is preparing for such a scenario.

Oh Soo-young, Arirang News.