Biden says US ‘ready for anything North Korea does’ as he wraps up Seoul trip with Hyundai’s US$10 billion investment pledge
- The US president told reporters on Sunday that he was not concerned about any possible provocation Kim Jong-un might deliver while he is touring the region
- He was speaking at an event showcasing carmaker Hyundai’s pledge to invest at least US$10 billion in electric vehicles and related technologies in the US
“We are prepared for anything North Korea does,” the US president said in response to a reporter’s question. “We’ve talked through how we’d respond to whatever they do so I am not concerned, if that’s what you’re suggesting.”
Biden said he was not concerned about any possible provocation by North Korea while he is touring the region.
Biden touts wider regional cooperation in South Korea visit, avoids mentioning China
Hyundai’s US investment includes US$5.5 billion for an electric vehicle and battery factory in the state of Georgia.
Appearing with Biden, Hyundai CEO Euisun Chung said on Sunday that his company would spend another US$5 billion on artificial intelligence for autonomous vehicles and other technologies.
“Electric vehicles are good for our climate goals, but they’re also good for jobs,” Biden said. “And they’re good for business.”
The major US investment by a South Korean company is a reflection of how the US and South Korea are leveraging their long-standing military ties into a broader economic partnership.
Biden has made greater economic cooperation with South Korea a priority, saying on Saturday that “it will bring our two countries even closer together, cooperating even more closely than we already do, and help strengthen our supply chains, secure them against shocks and give our economies a competitive edge.”
The pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February has forced a deeper rethinking of national security and economic alliances. Coronavirus outbreaks led to shortages of computer chips, autos and other goods that the Biden administration says can ultimately be fixed by having more manufacturing domestically and with trusted allies.
Hyundai’s Georgia factory is expected to employ 8,100 workers and produce up to 300,000 vehicles annually, with plans for construction to begin early next year and production to start in 2025 near the unincorporated town of Ellabell.
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Biden decided to skip a visit to the demilitarised zone on the North and South’s border – a regular stop for US presidents when visiting Seoul, but one he had previously done when vice-president. Instead, Biden was more interested in visiting Osan to see an installation “where the rubber hits the road” for US and South Korean troops maintaining security on the Korean peninsula, said White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan.
Yoon campaigned on a promise to strengthen the US-South Korea relationship. He reiterated at a dinner on Saturday in Biden’s honour that it was his goal to move the relationship “beyond security” issues with North Korea, which have long dominated the relationship.
“I will try and design a new future vision of our alliances with you, Mr. President,” Yoon said.
A central theme for the trip, Biden’s first to Asia as president, is to tighten US alliances to counter China’s influence in the region.
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Sullivan said the president’s national security and economic teams were still reviewing “how to move beyond the trade approach of the previous administration.”
Additional reporting by Reuters