Ulsan: Foreign Minister Cho Hyun on Wednesday emphasized the importance of collaborating with the United States to foster "mutually beneficial" shipbuilding cooperation. This statement was made during his visit to a significant shipyard in the southeastern industrial city of Ulsan, as South Korea seeks to align with the U.S. initiative to rejuvenate its shipbuilding industry.
According to Yonhap News Agency, Cho highlighted during his visit to the HD Hyundai shipyard that the South Korea-U.S. alliance is expanding into a comprehensive strategic partnership. This partnership now includes not only security but also economic and advanced technology sectors. He stated, "As shipbuilding cooperation emerges as one of the key pillars for advancing the alliance, the ministry will work closely with relevant government agencies and our industries to actively engage with the U.S. so that our shipbuilding cooperation leads to a mutually beneficial outcome."
The visit was attended by acting U.S. Ambassador to Seoul, Joseph Yun, and a group of lawmakers from the National Assembly's foreign affairs and unification committee. This tour comes as part of South Korea's broader efforts to enhance cooperation with the U.S. in the shipbuilding industry, aligning with the strategic move by the Donald Trump administration to revitalize the American shipbuilding sector.
Seoul has introduced large-scale shipbuilding cooperation projects known as "Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA)." This initiative has been a pivotal element in securing the recent tariff agreement with the Trump administration earlier this month. MASGA aims to establish new shipyards in the U.S., develop shipbuilding personnel, and rebuild related supply chains. It also focuses on constructing American ships and collaborating on maintenance, repair, and overhaul (MRO) projects.
The foreign ministry reported that the minister, ambassador, and lawmakers reiterated South Korea's role as a crucial partner for the U.S. in its efforts to rebuild the shipbuilding sector. They called for a strengthened cooperation framework and the exploration of concrete measures to advance full-scale shipbuilding collaboration between the two nations.
Rep. Kim Seok-ki of the main opposition People Power Party, who chairs the Assembly's foreign affairs committee, expressed full support for the bilateral cooperation at the parliamentary level.