Seoul Pushes Back on Trump's Alaska LNG Claims

Seoul has pushed back on US President Donald Trump's claim that South Korea has committed to investing $50 billion in an Alaska liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, saying investment must be commercially viable. The two countries reached a bilateral agreement on the overall framework of a $142.3 billion strategic investment plan in the US, covering around 70% of the $200 billion funding that Korea pledged to invest in exchange for lower tariffs.

The agreement was announced by Trump in the Oval Office at the White House, with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and others in attendance. However, Trade Minister Kim Jung-kwan emphasized that the project's commercial reasonableness must be confirmed before proceeding.

Kim also stated that the only agreements made with the US are illustrated in three sentences of the joint fact sheet, including commencing work on the Alaska LNG project subject to meeting commercial reasonableness. The US will facilitate the favorable involvement of Korean vendors and suppliers and provide assurances regarding offtake agreements at economically viable prices.

The National Assembly is expected to focus intensively on this issue during meetings of the relevant standing committee and parliamentary audit of the government. The opposition People Power Party has criticized the Lee administration for not disclosing whether it was aware of Trump's announcement in advance.