South Korea¡¯s tariff negotiations with the U.S. emerged as an early test for President Lee Jae Myung¡¯s ¡°pragmatic diplomacy centered on national interest.¡± By successfully forging what some are calling the ¡°Korean model¡± for striking a deal with the Trump administration, many would argue that Lee and his government have passed the test ¡ª at least for now.
President Lee was elected in June amid political upheaval just six months after U.S. President Donald Trump began his second term. Since taking office in January, Trump has waged what many see as an all-out tariff war on trading partners around the globe. His strong preference for bilateralism has been well known since the early days of his first term. But what distinguishes his second administration is the pursuit of ¡°simultaneous bilateralism¡± ¡ª negotiating with multiple countries at once, while applying maximum pressure on one target state to quickly secure a deal, then using that outcome as a benchmark for subsequent negotiations.
This ¡°pressure-first¡± approach has produced significant results. Despite granting a 15% tariff reduction, Washington extracted major concessions from key trading partners such as the European Union, including a $600 billion investment package and commitments to increase defense spending.
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