Alaska LNG dispute threatens to stall Korea-U.S. security talks

A dispute over a liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Alaska is threatening to delay Korea-U.S. security talks after U.S. President Donald Trump said that he would “double it up” if Korea doesn’t commit $54 billion to the project.

It is unclear what exactly Trump intends to double. One possibility is the amount of Korean investment, though foreign media reports have focused instead on tariffs.

“It’s worrying to see this kind of debate starting now,” a senior official from the ruling Democratic Party said in a phone call with the JoongAng Ilbo on Sunday. “There’s no saying that security talks won’t stall again because of the Alaska LNG [project]. This isn’t the first or second time that security talks have been held back by investment [issues].”

Last year, Korea pledged $350 billion in investments as part of a trade deal with Washington. Its Ministry of Trade, Industry and Resources announced the first project under that package — a $22.3 billion gas-fired power plant in Texas — on Thursday.

Seoul hoped that the progress would help restart stalled security talks, which cover issues such as its push to build nuclear-powered submarines.

But when unveiling Korea’s investment projects at the White House on Wednesday, Trump stated that the Asian country would invest $54 billion in the Alaska project, a plan to pipe natural gas about 800 miles from the state’s North Slope to the southern coast, where it would be chilled into liquid and shipped to buyers in Asia.

The Korea-U.S. joint fact sheet, however, states only that Korea will begin reviewing the project to see whether it is commercially reasonable and meets domestic legal requirements.

Seoul’s Trade Ministry also drew a line afterward, clarifying, “Nothing has been decided on whether to invest [in the pipe] or on the scale of investment.”

However, Trump maintained the pressure on Friday.

"I didn’t jump the gun," he said when asked by reporters whether it had been premature for him to include the Alaska project in the announcement when Korea had not yet agreed to it.

“And let’s see if they don’t want to do it. That’s okay with me,” he continued. “[But] I’ll just charge them more.”

That same day, he wrote on Truth Social that the “Korea Deal keeps getting BETTER!” He also claimed that the agreement additionally included an $8.4 billion enhanced oil recovery project, which does not appear in the investment fact sheet.

The Trade Ministry again responded, “What the two countries agreed on is only what is stated in the joint fact sheet and press release,” and asked Washington to explain the U.S. president’s claim.

The Korean government had initially been optimistic after announcing the first investment project, as it planned to use the progress in the investment talks to restart the long-delayed Korea-U.S. security negotiations this month.

“Progress on [Korea’s] strategic investment in the United States has created momentum to pursue follow-up consultations in all areas of the joint fact sheet,” Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said at a press briefing on Friday.

He then pledged to “speed up consultations between Korea and the United States to produce visible results” on issues including nuclear-powered submarines and uranium enrichment and reprocessing.

Also on Friday, a senior official from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that the Alaska project becoming a point of contention between Seoul and Washington again was "almost none."

“We intend to restart [the security consultations] soon and proceed with the negotiations as we want, as quickly as possible,” the official said.

BY YOON JI-WON [[email protected]]