Trump calls tariff letters "the deals" but remains open to tariff talks

U.S. President Donald Trump referred to the letters he sent about tariff rates as the "deals" with U.S. trading partners, but stressed that more trade talks could still happen.

Meanwhile, South Korea's top trade negotiator faced the media on Monday, saying that negotiations have made progress.

Lee Soo-jin starts us off.

U.S. President Donald Trump left the door open to further trade talks, even as he maintained that the letters he sent regarding tariff rates are "the deals" with U.S. trading partners.

Speaking at the White House on Monday during a meeting with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, Trump told reporters, "The deals are already made."

"The letters are the deals. The deals are made. There are no deals to make. They would like to do a different kind of a deal and we're always open to talk. We are open to talk, including to Europe."

This comes after Trump sent letters to 25 countries, notifying them of their blanket tariff rates --starting with South Korea and Japan on July 7 with a 25 percent rate, followed by the EU and Mexico with a 30 percent rate.

The letters also noted the extension of the effective date for reciprocal tariffs to August 1, pushing back the previous July 9 deadline.

Meanwhile, Trump said the U.S. has been taken advantage of in trade and military matters.

He posted on his social media Truth Social, on Monday, saying that for decades the country has been "ripped off on trade and military," adding, "it has come at a cost of trillions of dollars."

However, he did not name any specific country in the post.

With less than three weeks to go before sweeping U.S. tariffs take effect, South Korea's Trade Minister Yeo Han-gu says negotiations with Washington have entered what he calls "game time."

Speaking to reporters Monday at the Sejong Government Complex, Yeo stressed, "With under 20 days left, it's now a time for choices and decisions."

He added that Seoul is ramping up give-and-take talks to find a "landing zone," aiming to secure a broad package deal.

And amid U.S. demands to lower trade barriers, Yeo also touched on a sensitive topic for the country.

The agricultural industry.

The trade minister said free trade talks, not just with the U.S. but with any other trade partners, are always "painful."

Yeo, however, underscored the need for strategic judgment as despite the pain for the agro-sector, Korean industry as a whole has taken steps forward from trade deals made in the past.

Lee Soo-jin, Arirang News.