Gwangju Civic Groups: "U.S. Making Unfair Investment Demands... Government Must Respond Firmly"

Protect Economic Sovereignty! NO Trump! Gwangju Citizens' Emergency Action holds a press conference for a national declaration on the 28th at the 5·18 Democracy Square in Dong-gu. Provided by Gwangju Citizens' Emergency Action

Civic groups in Gwangju have called on the government to take a firm stance against the United States' demands for large-scale investments ahead of the upcoming South Korea-U.S. summit.

Protect Economic Sovereignty! NO Trump! On October 28, Gwangju Citizens' Emergency Action issued a national declaration at 5·18 Democracy Square in Dong-gu, stating, "At the South Korea-U.S. summit, the Lee Jaemyung administration must not sign on to the U.S. investment demands and should negotiate with confidence." They added, "The 500 trillion won investment demanded by the United States amounts to 84% of South Korea's foreign currency reserves, a figure that is incomprehensible in any normal, civilized country."

They continued, "The reason tariff negotiations with the United States have dragged on for over three months is that the U.S. demands are not negotiations, but coercive pressures. The unilateral selection of investment destinations by the United States, and the claim that profits will be divided 9:1, are further examples. If the United States treats Korea like a subordinate state or a cash dispenser, what else can this be called but plunder?"

They further explained, "If such a massive sum is siphoned out under the pretext of investment, our economy will inevitably fall into 'crisis.' The livelihoods of the people will face serious threats. The resulting chain reaction-including reduced domestic investment, industrial crises, fiscal burdens, foreign currency reserve issues, and subsequent international credit problems-will drive our economy into disaster."

They also emphasized, "The government must never yield to the United States' coercive demands. Even with a looming deadline, we must not rush into disaster when such a catastrophic crisis is clearly foreseeable." They added, "The National Assembly must thoroughly review and scrutinize the government's entire negotiation process on behalf of the people, ensure the public's right to know, and democratically gather public opinion to confidently confront the United States' acts of plunder."

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