Prime Minister Kim Meets U.S. Lawmakers: "No Discrimination Against Coupang... Korea-U.S. Trust Remains Strong"

Prime Minister Kim Minseok, who is currently visiting the United States, stated on the 22nd (local time), "There is absolutely no discrimination against Coupang, and the relationship of trust between South Korea and the United States is such that there is no need to worry about any discriminatory treatment." He dismissed attempts in some quarters to escalate the Coupang personal information leak incident into a trade dispute between the two countries.

Prime Minister Kim Minseok is visiting the United States Capitol on the 22nd (local time), engaging in conversations with key members of the House of Representatives. January 23, 2026. [Photo by the Prime Minister's Office]

According to the Office of the Prime Minister, Kim made these remarks during a luncheon in Washington, D.C. with seven members of the U.S. House of Representatives, when asked about the Korean government's response to the Coupang incident. Kim further emphasized, "South Korea does not consider the Georgia incident to be a case of discrimination simply because the workers involved were Korean. Likewise, the actions taken regarding Coupang were not because it is an American company, and there is absolutely no discrimination."

Previously, Coupang's investors, Greenoaks and Altimeter, announced their intention to initiate international investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) arbitration procedures against the Korean government, claiming that Coupang was being treated unfairly. They argued that as Coupang threatened the market share of Chinese competitors, the Korean government was excessively cracking down on Coupang under the pretext of the personal information leak incident. However, it is reported that they did not provide specific evidence to support these claims.

Meanwhile, during the luncheon, there was discussion about the need for the swift passage of the "Korea Partner Act," which would facilitate the issuance of professional visas for Koreans, in response to last September's mass detention of Korean workers in Georgia. The bill, introduced by Representative Young Kim, is currently pending in the U.S. House of Representatives. The lawmakers said, "We are witnessing the positive impact of Korean companies' investments and contributions to the growth of Korean communities and local economic development in our respective districts," and pledged to work toward the bill's passage. They also emphasized the bipartisan support in Congress for the Korea-U.S. alliance in areas such as critical mineral supply chains, economic security, and shipbuilding.

Prime Minister Kim stated, "Through this visit to the United States, I hope we can further stabilize and continuously develop Korea-U.S. relations, including accelerating the implementation of follow-up measures to the Korea-U.S. tariff negotiations."

Afterward, Prime Minister Kim visited the Korean War Veterans Memorial Park to lay a wreath and held a discussion with American youth on Korean culture at the Korean Cultural Center in Washington. He also met with members of the Korean community in the Washington area, stating, "The President is deeply interested in the Korean community, and since his visit to the United States, he has been working to support the development of the Korean community through cabinet meetings and work reports."