Jung Yong-jin "In-depth Talk with Trump"...Will South Korea's business community, which Trump has expressed friendliness, be a bridge between Seoul and Washington?

[Anchor]
Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin met with President-elect Trump and had an in-depth conversation on various topics for 15 minutes.

He also said he would attend Trump's inauguration as a government delegation, and attention is being paid to whether the business community will play a bridge role between South Korea and the U.S. amid the leadership vacuum.

I'm correspondent Lee Seung-yoon from New York.

[Reporter]
Shinsegae Group Chairman Chung Yong-jin said he met with President-elect Trump for a meal and had an in-depth conversation on various topics for 15 minutes.

There were no South Korean comments or messages from the South Korean government, and they said they were ready to go to Trump's inauguration as a government mission.

He also said he stayed at Mar-a-Lago for six days at the invitation of Trump's eldest son, Trump Jr., and met many people, including Trump's aides and presidential campaign officials.

Chairman Chung is the only one to disclose that he has met with Trump in person since the presidential election, but Trump has expressed his affinity with the Korean business community several times.

[Donald Trump / Then-U.S. President (Back in 2019): I know Hyundai, Samsung, CJ, SK all of you. They are all famous and great business leaders. We'll meet again.]

During the U.S. presidential election, Trump called South Korea a "money machine" and insisted that the U.S. military presence in South Korea should be raised to 14 trillion won a year.

In addition, as South Korea has a trade surplus with the U.S., there is a growing concern that universal tariffs of more than 10% will be imposed on South Korean products after the launch of Trump's second term.

At Trump's inauguration ceremony, Hanwha Group Chairman Kim Seung-yeon was the only one invited in the Korean business community.
Attention is focusing on which Korean businessmen will be invited to the second inauguration ceremony of
and whether they will be able to play a role as a bridge between South Korea and the U.S. in the absence of leadership in Korea.

I'm YTN's Lee Seungyoon from New York.

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Photo Source: Yonhap News Agency