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USTR says S. Korea, U.S. agree on achieving ‘expedient, meaningful’ progress toward ‘reciprocal’ trade

April 25, 2025

The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) said Friday that South Korea and the United States agreed to seek “expedient and meaningful” progress toward “reciprocal and balanced” trade during a bilateral meeting in Washington the previous day.

In a readout, the office cast the meeting between USTR Jamieson Greer and Ahn Duk-geun, South Korea’s minister of trade, industry and energy (MOTIE), as “productive.” The two sides met as Seoul is angling to secure exemptions and exceptions from the Trump administration’s “reciprocal” and sectoral tariffs.

“During the productive meeting, Ambassador Greer underscored the priorities of President Trump’s America First Trade Policy, and both sides agreed on the importance of achieving expedient and meaningful progress toward reciprocal and balanced trade between the United States and Korea,” the office said.

“The ministers discussed next steps between USTR and MOTIE and instructed their teams to engage in technical discussions next week,” it added.

Greer noted his attendance at the ministerial Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting on South Korea’s southern resort island of Jeju next month, the office said.