The Korea-US Policy Consultation Delegation Departs on the 3rd... Working-Level Talks with Officials in Washington

5-Night 7-Day Schedule... Low Possibility of Biden Visit
Yoon Urges "Substantial Solutions to Policies"

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hye-min] The ‘Korea-US Policy Consultation Delegation (Delegation)’ dispatched by President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol will depart for the United States on the 3rd. The delegation is scheduled to stay in Washington for five nights and seven days, meeting with key figures. However, the possibility of a meeting with President Joe Biden is reportedly low.

Kim Eun-hye, spokesperson for the President-elect, stated at a briefing at the transition office in Tongui-dong, Seoul on the 1st, "They will meet with responsible key figures who possess practical expertise."

The delegation’s departure schedule appears to take into account the U.S. Congress’s calendar. The U.S. Congress will enter a two-week recess starting from the 11th. To meet with U.S. congressional officials before the new government’s inauguration, it is necessary to visit the U.S. in early June.

During their stay in the U.S., the delegation will remain in Washington D.C. and meet with officials from the U.S. administration, Congress, and think tanks, among other U.S. establishment figures. Considering precedent, there is a possibility of meetings with officials from the U.S. Department of State, Department of Defense, and the White House National Security Council (NSC).

However, the likelihood of a meeting with President Biden is somewhat low. In previous cases, during the 2008 period when Lee Myung-bak was president-elect, then-lawmaker Chung Mong-joon, who visited as a special envoy, met with then-National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley, and President Bush briefly stopped by the office, resulting in a meeting. In 2013, the delegation visiting during Park Geun-hye’s presidency-elect period did not meet with President Barack Obama.

This time, considering that under current law a special envoy cannot be sent in the status of president-elect, the delegation was formed accordingly, making an official schedule with President Joe Biden unlikely. A delegation official said, "Since this is a policy consultation group, it is different from a special envoy group that must meet the president," adding, "We are not focusing on a meeting with the president." He conveyed, "President-elect Yoon’s request is to effectively resolve practical policy issues." The delegation will discuss matters related to the Korea-US alliance and cooperation on economic security between the two countries.

The delegation is led by Park Jin, a member of the People Power Party, with Cho Tae-yong appointed as deputy leader. Included are Seoul National University professors Jung Jae-ho and Park Cheol-hee, retired Major General Pyo Se-woo, Deputy Research Fellow Yeon Won-ho from the Korea Institute for International Economic Policy, and Kang In-sun, the President-elect’s foreign press spokesperson.