WASHINGTON — Foreign Minister Cho Hyun met U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio in the United States for wide-ranging talks on key bilateral issues. In a statement released after the meeting, the South Korean government emphasized communication aimed at producing results from investment talks with Washington and Seoul's role as a "pacemaker" in restarting dialogue between the U.S. and North Korea. Washington, by contrast, highlighted cooperation in semiconductors and the "prompt implementation" of investment pledges, underscoring a gap in emphasis between the two sides.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the 20th, Cho held the ministerial meeting with Rubio at the State Department building in Washington, D.C., on the 18th. It was the first bilateral meeting between the two ministers in about seven months, following their previous talks in February, and covered a range of issues including investment in the U.S., the situation on the Korean Peninsula and South Korea's contribution in the Strait of Hormuz.
In its statement on the meeting, the South Korean side said the two ministers agreed to work toward good results in the consultations on investment in the U.S., and to maintain communication on implementing agreements reached by the two leaders, including the joint fact sheet from the South Korea-U.S. summit. The statement added that the South Korean government said it would actively support the resumption of U.S.-North Korea dialogue as a "pacemaker," and that Cho explained Seoul's willingness to make a substantive contribution to restoring free passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
The U.S. State Department, by contrast, said the two ministers agreed to continue cooperating across key strategic sectors, including semiconductors. The remark is read as emphasizing expanded U.S. investment by South Korean companies such as Samsung Electronics. The department also said Rubio stressed the importance of creating a fair, transparent and level environment for American companies doing business in South Korea, pointing to bilateral issues such as the Coupang case and South Korea's revised network act. The U.S. side further said Rubio stressed that investment commitments in the U.S. should be implemented promptly. With the related negotiations in their final stage, the comment is seen as pressure on Seoul to move quickly on investment.
