South Korea and the United States held a high-level meeting after the U.S. government announced it would impose tariffs of up to 12.5% on countries that fail to block imports of products made with forced labor.
The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) said Thursday that Yeo Han-koo, South Korea's Trade Minister, met with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Wednesday in Paris on the sidelines of the 2026 Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) Ministerial Council Meeting.
During the meeting, Yeo directly assessed the background of the Section 301 investigation findings on the import ban of forced-labor products, which the USTR announced on Tuesday, as well as the ongoing investigation plans into overproduction sectors. "Minister Yeo emphasized that the balance of interests under the existing Korea-U.S. tariff agreement must be maintained," a MOTIE official said. "In response, the U.S. side reaffirmed its intent to abide by the Korea-U.S. tariff agreement."
The two sides also reviewed the implementation status of the joint fact sheet agreed upon by the leaders of both countries last November.
"I clearly conveyed our position to the U.S. side that not only the findings of this Section 301 investigation but also any future trade issues arising between the two countries should be discussed within the framework of the Korea-U.S. tariff agreement, rather than through new tariff measures," Yeo said. "We will respond calmly to the remaining Section 301 procedures and work to ensure that trade issues are managed in a stable manner."
