SEOUL, March 17 (AJP) - A special bill outlining South Korea's massive investment pledges to the U.S. was approved at a cabinet meeting chaired by President Lee Jae Myung at the government complex in the administrative city of Sejong on Tuesday.
The approval comes about a week after the bill was passed at a plenary session in the National Assembly and roughly two months after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened in January to raise reciprocal tariffs on South Korea from 15 percent back to 25 percent, complaining about delays in Seoul's legislative process for the trade deal.
The bill would provide a legal framework to establish a fund for implementing bilateral agreements with the U.S., along with investment pledges of US$350 billion under a broader trade deal reached between the two countries last fall that includes $150 billion for shipbuilding and $200 billion for other key strategic sectors such as semiconductors, critical minerals, energy, and artificial intelligence.
The fund will be created with a capital of 2 trillion won (US$1.34 billion), fully funded by the government, with the exact timing and method of the contribution to be set by presidential decree.
The fund will be used for areas of mutual interest between the two countries as well as for loans and guarantees supporting shipbuilding-related projects.
The bill shall take effect three months after its promulgation.
The approval comes about a week after the bill was passed at a plenary session in the National Assembly and roughly two months after U.S. President Donald Trump threatened in January to raise reciprocal tariffs on South Korea from 15 percent back to 25 percent, complaining about delays in Seoul's legislative process for the trade deal.
The bill would provide a legal framework to establish a fund for implementing bilateral agreements with the U.S., along with investment pledges of US$350 billion under a broader trade deal reached between the two countries last fall that includes $150 billion for shipbuilding and $200 billion for other key strategic sectors such as semiconductors, critical minerals, energy, and artificial intelligence.
The fund will be created with a capital of 2 trillion won (US$1.34 billion), fully funded by the government, with the exact timing and method of the contribution to be set by presidential decree.
The fund will be used for areas of mutual interest between the two countries as well as for loans and guarantees supporting shipbuilding-related projects.
The bill shall take effect three months after its promulgation.
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