U.S.-South Korea Deepen Shipbuilding Alliance; Trump and Lee Jae-myung Agree to Launch Working-Level Talks

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung and U.S. President Donald Trump held a summit meeting during the NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) summit in Ankara, Turkey, reaching a significant consensus to formally launch working-level consultations. This initiative aims to implement President Trump’s proposal to utilize South Korea’s advanced shipbuilding capabilities to accelerate the construction of U.S. naval warships.

This meeting marks the second time the two leaders have met within three weeks, following their previous encounter at the G7 summit in Évian, France, last month. During the G7 summit, President Trump inquired whether South Korea could assist in accelerating the construction of U.S. Navy vessels, even explicitly mentioning his hope for South Korea to rapidly build 10 U.S. warships.

In response, President Lee Jae-myung expressed a firm willingness to cooperate during the Ankara talks, pledging to 'actively cooperate' and personally introduced to President Trump the world-class shipbuilding and advanced technological capabilities of South Korean shipbuilders such as HD Hyundai Heavy Industries and Hanwha Ocean.

President Trump expressed high expectations for South Korea’s overwhelming shipbuilding capacity and rapid procurement speed. Both sides agreed to immediately establish a working group composed of government officials and experts to conduct detailed assessments on specific implementation plans for warship construction. This cooperation reflects the United States’ growing emphasis on South Korea’s global competitiveness in the shipbuilding industry, as part of its broader strategy to expand naval production capacity and strengthen defense industrial collaboration with allies.

In fact, economic foundations for cooperation between South Korea’s shipbuilding sector and the United States are already robust. Under a trade agreement reached last year, South Korea plans to invest approximately $350 billion in the U.S., with about $150 billion specifically allocated to revitalizing America’s shipbuilding industry. Additionally, as a core security partner of the U.S. in the Indo-Pacific region, South Korea currently hosts approximately 28,500 U.S. troops.

Beyond military and defense matters, the two leaders also reaffirmed their earlier 'golf agreement' made at the G7 summit. They agreed to coordinate President Lee Jae-myung’s official visit to the U.S. and schedule a separate golf outing during the trip to deepen personal friendship and bilateral diplomatic engagement.