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donald trump Said the US has “substantially finalized” the details of a complex trade deal south korea as he marked Last stop on his whirlwind Asia Tour on Wednesday.
US President confirms long-awaited deal Almost off-the-table compromise When he sat down to dinner with the South Korean President lee jae myung In the southeastern city of Gyeongju.
Trump is on his five-day diplomacy tour of Asia and has also visited Malaysia Japan, Before reaching South Korea. He will leave for Washington on Thursday.
Asked by a reporter if he and the South Korean president had reached an agreement, Trump said, “We have made our agreement and have almost finalized it.”
South Korea is hosting Trump at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Forum in the coastal city before his talks with the Chinese President Xi Jinping Thursday. He was given a grand welcome after ending the Tokyo leg of his whirlwind tour.
Trump’s comments came at a time when hopes for a trade deal with its East Asian ally were low as the US leader was still nursing tensions stemming from his trade war with China.
Washington pressured South Korea into similar trade arrangements signed with Japan offering $550bn (£416bn) of strategic investments, loans and guarantees in exchange for tariff relief.
But Seoul says it cannot repay the $350bn (£264bn) pledged in advance. Instead, it has introduced a mix of phased investments, loans and other measures. This remains a tension point in trade talks between the two sides.
Lee’s aides said it was ultimately agreed that Seoul could split its promised $350 billion investment fund into $200 billion in cash, to be paid in $20 billion tranches.
Another $150 billion is to be spent on investments in shipbuilding, which South Korea has promised to help Trump restore.
Earlier during the day, Trump announced that a trade deal with South Korea would be finalized “very soon” as he addressed a summit of APEC CEOs in Gyeongju before sitting down with the South Korean president for dinner.
However, officials on both sides expressed skepticism about the chances of any success.
The US and South Korea announced a trade deal in late July, allowing Seoul to avoid the worst tariffs by promoting at least $350bn (£264bn) of new investment in the US.
The structure of those investments remained unclear, leading to a standoff between the two sides.
Trump’s visit to Asian allies, which have been hit hardest by his tariff policies and the escalating US-China trade war, is aimed at building better relations.
Efforts were also made by South Korean President Lee to woo him.
Lee’s office said in recognition of Trump’s role as a “peacemaker” on the Korean Peninsula, he was awarded a replica crown of the “Grand Order of Mugunghwa”, named after South Korea’s national flower, the pink hibiscus, also known as the Rose of Sharon in English.
“I would like to wear it right now,” Trump said when presented with the glittering award. South Korean officials said he is the first US president to receive this honor.
The meal included “Mini Beef Patties with Ketchup”, a “Korean Platter of Sincerity” consisting of US beef and local rice and soybean paste, and grilled fish with ketchup and gochujang, a red chili paste.
A gold-decorated brownie called “Peacemakers Dessert” was served at the beginning of the working lunch.
Lee also requested the US to allow him to reprocess nuclear fuel to power submarines as South Korea is prohibited from doing so without US consent due to a bilateral agreement.
In response, the US President said he would help “straighten out” South Korea’s problems with North Korea. Both the Korean countries are facing a war-like crisis amid Pyongyang’s repeated missile tests.
After the dinner, the South Korean presidential adviser said he had invited Lee back to the White House.
During this visit, Trump was also expected to meet North Korea’s Kim Jong Un, many people had such a wish, but Wednesday’s brief meeting was not possible.
To ease the region’s trade crisis, Trump said he hoped to reduce U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods in exchange for Beijing’s commitment to reduce exports of fentanyl precursor chemicals.
The US may halve the 20 percent duty it currently imposes on Chinese goods in retaliation for exports of such chemicals, the Wall Street Journal reports.
In their final high-level meeting, Trump is due to hold talks with Xi in the port city of Busan on Thursday, which he expects to be at least three to four hours long. Trump said that he hoped that the talks with his Chinese counterpart would be good.