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Acting president says Korea will not join hands with China, Japan to fight tariffs, CNN reports

Published: 09 Apr. 2025, 08:49 Updated: 09 Apr. 2025, 13:09

Acting President Han Duck-soo on a phone call with U.S. President Donald Trump on April 8 [YONHAP]

Acting President Han Duck-soo said Korea will not form a coalition with China and Japan to jointly respond to the U.S. tariff measures, but seeks to resolve the issue through negotiations with Washington, CNN reported Tuesday.

Han made the remark in an interview with the news channel as Korea faces the 25 percent "reciprocal tariff" scheme from the Donald Trump administration in a measure that is feared to impact the country's export-oriented economy.

"I don't think that kind of fighting back will improve the situation dramatically," Han was quoted as saying by the news channel when asked if Seoul would join together with Japan or China to fight the U.S. tariffs.

"We will not take that route," he said.

The interview was released shortly after Han spoke with Trump over the phone in the first such conversation between the allies at the leaders' level since Trump took office in January.

Since Trump slapped the duties on dozens of other nations, whether they be friends or foes, some have raised concern over the possibility of affected countries getting together with China to fight against Trump's tariff war.

Denouncing the tariff plans, Sen. Brian Schatz, a Democrat from Hawaii, brought up the recent trilateral meeting among the trade ministers of Korea, Japan and China, calling the picture of the three "the most shocking image" that possibly indicates the world is "uniting against" the United States.

While describing the newly announced levies as "a pity," Han said that Seoul would "negotiate in a cool way" with Washington to work out a solution based on the two countries' "very strong alliance," according to CNN.

Han said that "not everything will be solved in a day or two," expressing optimism that a resolution can be reached.

"I think we should, in a very cool way, assess what this kind of 25 percent means for us, and we should, in a very cool way, negotiate with them," he was quoted as saying.

Seoul has been making all-out efforts to address the tariff hike, with top trade officials flying to Washington for talks with the Trump side to address the situation.

Yonhap