Deputy Minister Choi Jong-geon to Visit the U.S. Within Days, Meets Deputy Secretary Biegun... First U.S. Diplomatic Visit (Comprehensive)

Ministry of Foreign Affairs "Ongoing Frequent Consultations"... Defense Cost-Sharing Talks in Deadlock, G7 Summit, US-China Conflict Expected to Be Discussed

Choi Jong-geon, First Vice Foreign Minister, and Harry Harris, U.S. Ambassador to Korea, are meeting and greeting each other with an elbow bump on the afternoon of the 31st at the Government Seoul Office Annex in Jongno-gu, Seoul. / Photo by Joint Press Corps

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Choi Jong-geon, the newly appointed First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, will visit the United States within a few days to meet with his dialogue partner, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Stephen Biegun. This will be about two months since Biegun’s visit to Korea last July.

On the 6th, a Foreign Ministry official stated, "First Vice Minister Choi and Deputy Secretary Biegun had their first phone call on the 2nd and agreed to meet as soon as possible to discuss overall bilateral relations and regional situations," adding, "There are ongoing consultations with the U.S. side regarding exchange schedules at various levels, but there is currently nothing to confirm."

It is known that Vice Minister Choi’s visit to the U.S. is likely to take place this week. This will be his first face-to-face diplomacy in the U.S. since his appointment, and after Biegun’s phone invitation on the 2nd, both sides appear to have been coordinating the schedule in detail.

During this visit, Vice Minister Choi is expected to exchange views on the stalled Korea-U.S. defense cost-sharing negotiations, attendance at the Group of Seven (G7) summit, and current issues such as the situation in Northeast Asia.

Regarding the Special Measures Agreement (SMA) on defense cost-sharing between Korea and the U.S., the two sides have been at a stalemate for nine months due to sharply opposing positions. At one point, the Korea-U.S. negotiation team reached a tentative agreement on a "13% increase," but progress has stalled due to former U.S. President Donald Trump’s rejection. The U.S. still insists on a "significant increase," while Korea maintains a position to conclude negotiations promptly based on a reasonable and fair sharing principle.

As this is the first face-to-face diplomacy between the dialogue partners, it is expected that issues discussed during Deputy Secretary Biegun’s visit to Korea, including the G7 summit, the situation on the Korean Peninsula, and regional affairs, will be broadly discussed. Deputy Secretary Biegun, who also serves as the Special Representative for North Korea, visited Korea last July and met with then First Vice Minister Cho Se-young and Lee Do-hoon, Director-General for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs.

Amid escalating U.S.-China tensions, and following the visit of Yang Jiechi, a senior Chinese Communist Party Politburo member responsible for foreign affairs, to Korea last month, it is possible that the U.S. position on the U.S.-China conflict will be explained and Korean support requested. Of particular interest is whether the U.S. will mention the Economic Prosperity Network (EPN), promoted as part of the "anti-China bloc" concept, and the Quad Plus (QUAD+) initiative, which aims to include Korea and others in the Quad group of the U.S., Japan, Australia, and India.

Steven Biegun, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State and Special Representative for North Korea Policy, is speaking during a series of meetings on the morning of the 8th at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Seoul, following a meeting with Cho Se-young, First Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs, and then with Lee Do-hoon, Director General for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Photo by Joint Press Corps

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