Chung Yong-jin, chairman of South Korea’s retail giant Shinsegae Group, held in-depth talks with US President-elect Donald Trump, becoming the Asian country’s first tycoon to meet him, who has warned of tougher policies on the peninsula, a source at the conglomerate said on Sunday.
Chung dined with Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort and engaged in in-depth conversations for about 10 to 15 minutes, according to the official of Shinsegae Group in Seoul. Chung stayed at the resort for six days from Dec. 16.
“Chung had a meal with President-elect Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach, Florida,” said the official in Seoul.
“Chung had in-depth talks on various topics with Trump during the meal,” the official added, declining to elaborate on the details of the discussions.
He was the first South Korean magnate to meet Trump since his election in November. No one in South Korea’s business, political or diplomatic circles has met the president-elect.
TOUGHER POLICIES
Trump has called South Korea a “money machine” and said the longtime ally would be paying $10 billion a year for US troops stationed on the peninsula if he were in the White House.
The president-elect is expected to impose tariffs of more than 10% on South Korean products, posing additional downside risks for Asia’s fourth-largest economy.
Chung declined to comment on whether Trump discussed those issues.
“I am not in a position to answer such questions even if Trump asks,” he said, according to South Korean media, which met Chung at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Georgia on Saturday.
Chung also said the South Korean government has not asked him to deliver a message to Trump.
South Korea’s business community is eager for Chung to play a liaison role with the Trump administration, but he stayed cautious.
“What kind of qualification do I have (to play such a role)?”
INVITATION FROM TRUMP JR.
Despite the stance, South Korea’s government and business community had high hopes for Chung’s role between the two countries as he was invited to the Mar-a-Lago resort by Trump Jr. Chung had planned to stay there for three nights and for days, but extended his stay by two days.
Trump Jr., often nicknamed Don Jr., was so influential that some US media reported that the president-elect’s eldest son recommended Ohio Senator JD Vance for vice president.
Chung met various political and business figures, including those who worked for the election campaign, introduced by Trump jr. during his stay at the Mar-a-Lago resort.
That prompted expectations that South Korean government officials and politicians may ask Chung to help, sources in Seoul said.
By Jae-Kwang Ahn
ahnjk@hankyung.com
Jongwoo Cheon edited this article.
