President Trump used a visit from South Korea’s new president to announce he wants to renegotiate a trade deal negotiated and enacted by Presidents Bush and Obama.
President Trump opened his meeting Friday with newly elected South Korean President Moon Jae-in with tough trade talk, announcing he is renegotiating a 5-year-old trade deal between their two countries that was a joint legacy of Presidents George W. Bush and Obama.
Yet it was unclear from his and administration aides’ remarks how significant a break Trump was making with a free-trade agreement that had broad support when it was approved in Congress. Trump’s announcement could be seen as a provocation of an ally during a delicate time, when the administration is looking to South Korea to help contain North Korea’s nuclear program.
“It’s been a rough deal for the United States, but I think that it will be much different and it will be good for both parties, ” Trump said during a joint appearance with Moon in the Oval Office.
“We want something that’s going to be good for the American worker, ” Trump added.
Moon said nothing publicly to confirm that a full-scale renegotiation was underway. He said that the agreement benefits both countries, and they can address specific concerns if necessary. Trump’s public criticism of South Korea’s trade surplus with the United States could cause Moon embarrassment at home, and stoke pressure against U. S. demands for a harder line against North Korea.
Congressional approval would likely be required for major changes. White House spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders said that the U. S. trade representative, Robert E. Lighthizer, is calling a joint committee meeting with his Korean counterparts that would start an amendment process.
She dismissed questions about the impact on the U. S. security relationship with South Korea.
