Biden sends letter to Yoon expressing willingness for IRA talks

Oct 06, 2022, 07:39 am

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South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden talk after attending the 7th replenishment conference of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in New York on Sept. 21, 2022./ Source: Yonhap

AsiaToday reporters Lee Wook-jae & Park Young-hoon

U.S. President Joe Biden sent a letter to President Yoon Suk-yeol stating that he is well aware of South Korea’s concerns about the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and expressing his willingness to continue talks on it, the presidential office said on Wednesday.

As the IRA is an American political and strategic bill, many political observers say it is not easy to change it. However, expectations are growing that the bill could change as Biden has sent a personal letter mentioning the issue.

Senior presidential secretary for public relations Kim Eun-hye held a briefing at the presidential office in Yongsan, and said President Yoon received the letter on Tuesday, which contained Biden’s message on the IRA and the Korea-US alliance.

Biden said in his letter he is “well aware of Yoon’s concerns about the IRA” and the U.S. will “continue consultations with South Korea in a candid and open-minded manner,” according to Kim. Biden also said he is “confident a crucial role will be played by the U.S. alongside South Korea in strengthening the alliance and achieving their joint goals.”

“The letter was written based on the two leaders’ discussions on the IRA during their multiple meetings in New York and London last month,” Kim said.

“We assess that President Biden expressed his commitment to President Yoon to showing consideration to South Korean businesses in the future,” Kim added.

“President Biden reiterated his understanding of our concerns and clearly stated the positive role of South Korean businesses,” a senior official at the presidential office said. “It is important that President Biden expressed his clear understanding of our concerns through a personally signed letter and expressed his confidence and trust in South Korean businesses. We assess that President Biden has shown his willingness to cooperate,” the official said.

Many political observers say it is unusual for Biden to send such a personal letter. “As far as I know, the South Korean government is the only one that received a separate letter after the summit,” the official said. It seems that the effect that the South Korean government conveyed IRA concerns to the U.S. through multiple channels has worked.

In fact, it seems that the South Korean side’s dissatisfaction with the IRA is known in the United States. The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported Tuesday that discrimination of automakers due to the IRA is causing outrage among key allies in Asia and Europe. The WSJ said that South Korea was the country that criticized the IRA the most among its key allies.

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