{"id":2199023,"date":"2022-09-22T10:40:50","date_gmt":"2022-09-22T10:40:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/koreapro\/?p=2199023"},"modified":"2023-04-05T16:11:34","modified_gmt":"2023-04-05T07:11:34","slug":"yoons-talks-with-biden-fall-far-short-of-promised-us-rok-summit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/yoons-talks-with-biden-fall-far-short-of-promised-us-rok-summit\/","title":{"rendered":"Yoon\u2019s talks with Biden fall far short of promised US-ROK summit"},"content":{"rendered":"

While the South Korean government and media <\/span>hyped<\/span><\/a> talks<\/span><\/a> between President Yoon Suk-yeol and his U.S. counterpart for weeks, the two leaders\u2019 brief interaction in New York on Wednesday fell far short of the summit that was promised.<\/span><\/p>\n

Not only that, but Yoon will leave the U.N. General Assembly with the embarrassment of having been caught on camera calling the U.S. Congress <\/span>\u201cbastards.\u201d<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n

According to the White House, the two leaders <\/span>discussed<\/span><\/a> the U.S.-ROK alliance, the threat from North Korea, supply chain resilience, critical technologies, economic and energy security, global health and climate change. Seoul <\/span>added<\/span><\/a> that Yoon raised concerns about the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act and implementing liquidity facilities.<\/span><\/p>\n

Yet it seems unlikely that they covered these issues in much detail. South Korean government statements and a backbriefing seen by <\/span>Korea Pro<\/span><\/i> only indicate that Yoon spoke with Biden in London at Queen Elizabeth II\u2019s <\/span>funeral<\/span><\/a> and on the sidelines of the General Assembly.<\/span><\/p>\n

Their exchange at Wednesday\u2019s event in New York lasted only <\/span>48 seconds<\/span><\/a>, according to South Korean media, and afterward Yoon was <\/span>filmed saying<\/span><\/a> to an aide: \u201chow could Biden not lose damn face\u201d if the \u201cbastards don\u2019t pass it at parliament,\u201d likely referring to the U.S. Congress. It was unclear whether Yoon was referring to a piece of legislation or something else.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Reports highlighting this very specific gaffe and brief meeting with Biden may further embarrass Yoon, who is <\/span>still<\/span><\/a> suffering in the polls<\/span><\/a>. Ahead of the U.N. General Assembly, both domestic and foreign media built up the meeting as a formal \u201csummit\u201d where Yoon could air his concerns to Biden about a number of important economic issues for <\/span>around half an hour<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

And whether it\u2019s fair or not to describe Yoon\u2019s <\/span>non-meeting<\/span><\/a> with U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi during her trip to South Korea last month as a \u201csnub,\u201d referring to congressmembers as \u201cbastards\u201d is only going to add to this image of disregard for the legislative body.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Yoon appeared to refer to the U.S. Congress as \u201cbastards\u201d | Image: The White House<\/a> (March 1, 2022)<\/p><\/div>\n

WHAT, MR. PRESIDENT?<\/b><\/p>\n

Yoon\u2019s expletive-laden remark might have been a reference to Biden\u2019s call for Congress to support an additional $6 billion contribution to the Global Fund during his <\/span>speech<\/span><\/a> at the event.<\/span><\/p>\n

Yoon could have been empathizing with his American counterpart about the difficulties of dealing with the legislative branch. In South Korea, the opposition Democratic Party controls the National Assembly.<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s also possible that Biden gave his word on something important to Seoul, like some concessions on the <\/span>Inflation Reduction Act<\/span><\/a>. Seoul emphasized discussion about the Act, which is set to disqualify major South Korean electric vehicle manufacturers from U.S. tax credits, in its <\/span>statement<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

This might have been pretty difficult to convey in just 48 seconds. But according to South Korea, Biden <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> he\u2019s \u201cwell aware\u201d of Seoul\u2019s concerns and that the two countries \u201cshould continue to hold serious consultations.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

South Korea\u2019s <\/span>statement<\/span><\/a> also said the two leaders agreed to \u201ccooperate closely to implement liquidity facilities for financial stabilization if needed.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The Yoon administration is <\/span>pinning its hopes<\/span><\/a> on concluding another currency swap deal with the U.S. to stabilize the value of the won. On Thursday, South Korea\u2019s currency was trading at over 1,400 won against the dollar, the first time that\u2019s happened in <\/span>over 13 years<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

This is a symbolic and ominous figure since this <\/span>last happened<\/span><\/a> during the financial crises in Dec. 1997 and Nov. 2008. The weak won could <\/span>exacerbate<\/span><\/a> South Korea\u2019s trade deficit, a major problem for a country that relies on its exports.<\/span><\/p>\n

Seoul and Washington <\/span>have yet to renew<\/span><\/a> their <\/span>most recent<\/span><\/a> currency swap deal, worth $60 billion, which lasted until December last year.<\/span><\/p>\n

South Korea may have been <\/span>hoping for <\/span><\/a>progress during U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen\u2019s <\/span>visit<\/span><\/a> in July, after Yoon and Biden <\/span>recognized<\/span><\/a> the need to \u201c\u200b\u200bconsult closely on foreign exchange market developments\u201d at their summit in May.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"

Yoon and Biden didn\u2019t appear to discuss North Korea issues much | Image: Rodong Sinmun (May 18, 2022)<\/p><\/div>\n

IRONCLAD BUT UNIMAGINATIVE<\/b><\/p>\n

Seoul and Washington\u2019s comments on North Korea were particularly uninspiring, but reflect the lack of prospects for diplomacy on the nuclear issue over the past few years.<\/span><\/p>\n

With the Kim regime <\/span>refusing<\/span><\/a> U.S. offers to talk and <\/span>low support for sanctions<\/span><\/a> at the U.N., there\u2019s little that the allies can do but strengthen their military capabilities in response to Pyongyang\u2019s ever-evolving missile arsenal.<\/span><\/p>\n

The main thing of note was the <\/span>mention<\/span><\/a> of U.S. extended deterrence. The U.S. and South Korea <\/span>recently decided<\/span><\/a> to deploy U.S. strategic assets to the peninsula if the North conducts another nuclear test, for which Pyongyang appears to have <\/span>completed preparations<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n

While it\u2019s unclear exactly which assets would be deployed, South Korean vice defense minister Shin Beom-chul took <\/span>photos<\/span><\/a> inspecting nuclear-capable U.S. B-52 bombers during a trip to Washington last week for the Extended Deterrence Strategy Consultation Group (EDSCG), the first such meeting since 2018.<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite Yoon\u2019s faux pas at the Global Fund event, it is unlikely to have much impact on U.S.-South Korea ties, though it could hurt him domestically. After all, Donald Trump was notoriously adversarial toward South Korea, accusing it of fleecing the U.S. for military support, and yet the friendship between the two countries lives on.<\/span><\/p>\n

Even if the Yoon administration wasn\u2019t quite able to get the meeting with the U.S. president it wanted, Biden was unlikely to grant South Korea any major economic concessions at the U.N. Doing so could damage his party\u2019s position ahead of the <\/span>midterm elections<\/span><\/a> in November.<\/span><\/p>\n

Both South Korean and U.S. officials will likely continue to meet over the months ahead to discuss these thorny issues in more detail. Meanwhile, expect Yoon to be more cautious around hot mics.<\/span><\/p>\n

Edited by Bryan Betts<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

Business & Economy<\/span><\/a>Defense & Security<\/span><\/a>Inter-Korean & Foreign Relations<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

While the South Korean government and media hyped talks between President Yoon Suk-yeol and his U.S. counterpart for weeks, the two leaders\u2019 brief interaction in New York on Wednesday fell far short of the summit that was promised. Not only that, but Yoon will leave the U.N. General Assembly with the embarrassment of having been […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5769,"featured_media":2199024,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[24,26,28],"yoast_head":"\nYoon\u2019s talks with Biden fall far short of promised US-ROK summit - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2022\/09\/yoons-talks-with-biden-fall-far-short-of-promised-us-rok-summit\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Yoon\u2019s talks with Biden fall far short of promised US-ROK summit - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"While the South Korean government and media hyped talks between President Yoon Suk-yeol and his U.S. counterpart for weeks, the two leaders\u2019 brief interaction in New York on Wednesday fell far short of the summit that was promised. 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