Martial Arts, Private Economic Diplomacy Accelerates Ahead of US Election... "Strengthening Korea-US-Japan Cooperation"

'Networking Reception for US Congressional Delegation Invited Korea-US-Japan Economic Dialogue'
7 US Senators and Over 100 Executives from Key Institutions and Companies of Korea, US, and Japan Attend

The Korea International Trade Association (KITA) invited a delegation from the U.S. Congress to hold a Korea-U.S.-Japan economic dialogue. They requested policy support from the U.S. Congress to strengthen economic cooperation and intensified private diplomacy efforts.

Yoon Jin-sik, Chairman of the Korea International Trade Association (right), is greeting Senator Chris Coons. On the 4th, the Korea International Trade Association held the "US Congressional Delegation Invited Korea-US-Japan Trilateral Economic Dialogue Networking Reception" at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.
[Photo by Korea International Trade Association]

On the 5th, KITA announced that it held a "Korea-U.S.-Japan Trilateral Economic Dialogue Networking Reception" on the 4th at the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Yongsan-gu, Seoul. They invited seven U.S. senators who had come to Korea the previous day to attend the "Korea-U.S.-Japan Trilateral Economic Dialogue."

From the Korean side, KITA Chairman Yoon Jin-sik, Jeong In-gyo, Director-General for Trade at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, Ryu Jin, Chairman of the Korea Economic Association, Sohn Kyung-shik, Chairman of the Korea Employers Federation, and executives from major Korean companies operating in the U.S. attended.

From the U.S. side, Philip Goldberg, U.S. Ambassador to Korea; Senator Bill Hagerty (Republican, Tennessee), former U.S. Ambassador to Japan during the Trump administration; Senator Chris Coons (Democrat, Delaware), co-chair of the Democratic presidential campaign; and five other senators attended, along with key business figures from companies such as Google and Qualcomm. Over 100 executives from think tanks including the Woodrow Wilson Center, Hudson Institute, East Asia Foundation, and major institutions and companies from Korea, the U.S., and Japan such as Toyota and the U.S. Securities Exchange also participated.

In his welcoming remarks, Chairman Yoon said, "Korea, the U.S., and Japan are key allies in the Indo-Pacific region sharing the values of liberal democracy and market economy," emphasizing, "Given the rapidly changing global economic environment and increasing economic interdependence, trilateral corporate cooperation must be further strengthened for sustainable economic growth."

Senator Hagerty responded, "We will support Korean companies entering the U.S. on an equal footing with American companies," adding, "We will continue to work steadily so that companies from the three countries prosper together in the future."

With growing uncertainty in trade policies ahead of the U.S. presidential election this November, KITA is increasing activities to strengthen its network with the U.S. Congress. After hosting a meeting with members of the U.S. House Special Committee on the Strategic Competition between the U.S. and China who visited Korea last week, they have also met consecutively with Senator Lee Ju.