Top diplomats of S. Korea, U.S. to hold talks on alliance, Trump tariffs
By Kim Seung-yeon
SEOUL, Feb. 15 (Yonhap) — The top diplomats of South Korea and the United States were set to hold talks in Munich on Saturday, with the bilateral alliance, North Korea issues and Trump’s tariff plans expected to top the agenda.
Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul will meet one-on-one with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on the margins of the Munich Security Conference, the first such high-level talks between the allies since the launch of the Donald Trump administration.
The meeting comes as South Korea is seeking to ensure a smooth path in its relationship with the second Trump administration amid the political uncertainty sparked by now-impeached President Yoon Suk Yeol’s martial law bid in December last year.
Trump’s announcement on plans to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum, and weighing of new tariffs on vehicles and chips, have called on the need for swift coordination with Washington amid concerns South Korea could be the next target of Trump’s tariff policies.
Announcing Cho’s planned talks with Rubio, South Korea’s foreign ministry said “bilateral economic cooperation” would be one of the key topics of their discussions, along with North Korean nuclear issues and trilateral cooperation with Japan.
Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul departs for Munich at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on Feb. 14, 2025, to attend the Munich Security Conference in Germany. Cho is expected to hold talks with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and a trilateral meeting involving Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya on the sidelines of the multilateral gathering. (Yonhap)
Cho is expected to use the occasion to express South Korea’s position on Trump’s key economic and security issues, while reaffirming the bilateral alliance with Washington and the U.S. commitment to deterring North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.
Cho is also likely to discuss with Rubio coordination on the U.S. policy approach to North Korea’s denuclearization under the second Trump term, in a way that it will remain the allies’ shared goal.
The issue of the North’s denuclearization has drawn attention after Trump and his officials referred to Pyongyang as a “nuclear power,” sparking a debate in Seoul over the possibility of the U.S. recognizing the reclusive regime as a nuclear weapons state.
Trump later reaffirmed the U.S. commitment to the “complete denuclearization of North Korea” at the recent summit with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.
Following their talks, Cho will join Rubio and their Japanese counterpart, Takeshi Iwaya, at the same venue for a trilateral meeting. The three sides were expected to highlight the importance of maintaining and advancing the three-way cooperation.
Cho’s three-day visit to the German city also marks his first overseas trip since the martial law debacle.
elly@yna.co.kr
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