U.S. Ambassador Steel: "U.S. Companies in South Korea Must Compete on a Level Playing Field"

Joseph Yun: “Rapid Progress on OPCON Transfer Will Be Difficult”

U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Park Steel emphasized that “as the leaders of the two countries pledged, U.S. companies operating in South Korea should be able to compete on a level playing field.” Some observers say the political landscape is shifting as Democrats take control of both chambers of Congress in the U.S. midterm elections, but her remarks appeared to reaffirm the U.S. Administration’s longstanding position that American companies in South Korea should be treated fairly.

U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Park Steel delivers congratulatory remarks at the second Korea-U.S. Diplomacy Forum, held at the Glad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 10th. Yonhap News.

Steel made the remarks during her congratulatory address at the second Korea-U.S. Diplomacy Forum, hosted by the Korea-U.S. Parliamentary Union and organized by the East Asia Foundation at the Glad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, on Nov. 10. “The starting point is understanding each other better,” she said. She added, “We are not only security allies but also indispensable economic partners.”

Although she did not directly address issues involving specific companies such as Coupang or individual regulatory matters, her remarks were interpreted as underscoring that the “discrimination against U.S. companies” that the Trump Administration has raised with the South Korean government remains one of the key issues between the two countries.

Referring to last year’s Korea-U.S. summit, Steel said, “The agreement included South Korea’s investment of $350 billion in U.S. strategic industries, and with the National Assembly passing a special act, that pledge has taken shape in projects now being pursued.” She added, “Governments negotiate and reach agreements, but it is legislatures that sustain them.” She also expressed hope that South Korea would move closer to fulfilling its pledge to raise defense spending to 3.5% of gross domestic product (GDP) through the National Assembly’s budget process.

National Assembly Speaker Cho Jung-sik (right) and U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Park Steel talk at the 2nd Korea-U.S. Diplomatic Forum, held at the Glad Hotel in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 10th. Yonhap News

At a subsequent session titled “Korea-U.S. Diplomatic and Security Cooperation and Congressional Comparisons in the Second Half of the Trump Administration,” experts and lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties expressed differing views on the prospects for advancing key security issues between the two countries, including the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON), the construction of nuclear-powered submarines, and expanded authority to enrich uranium and reprocess spent nuclear fuel.

Joseph Yun, a former acting U.S. ambassador to South Korea who participated by video, said there was insufficient consensus in Washington on the transfer of OPCON and nuclear-related cooperation, predicting that rapid progress would be difficult. “In Washington political circles, the transfer of OPCON is a technical issue, not a political one,” he said. “It is impossible for South Korea to take over OPCON while also avoiding a weakening of the alliance.”

By contrast, Kim Jeong-seop, president of the Sejong Institute, said, “We should view this as a division of responsibilities in which South Korea takes the lead in defending the Korean Peninsula while the United States gains greater strategic freedom.” He said that a separate command structure, led by the South Korean military and supported by U.S. forces, would not necessarily weaken the alliance. “If every new threat and new type of warfare is made a condition for transferring OPCON, the transfer will be difficult to achieve indefinitely,” he said. He also identified communication with the U.S. Congress as a challenge.

Lawmakers from the ruling and opposition parties also disagreed on how to pursue security consultations. Kim Geon of the People Power Party said, “We should ask the United States to appoint a senior negotiator responsible for this issue and for negotiating with us, and we should appoint a counterpart on our side as well. By now, we should have received a draft agreement from the United States so that negotiations could begin, but we have not even reached the consultation stage.” In response, Kim Young-bae of the Democratic Party of Korea said, “The Ministry of National Defense already has a dedicated team for nuclear-powered submarines,” adding that it was “an issue the president is personally overseeing.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.