White House says Lee Jae Myung government is 'singling out' Coupang Inc

Foreign Ministry calls House Judiciary Committee report biased

Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Il speaks at a regular briefing at the Government Seoul Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday, saying the ministry "expresses regret" that a US House Judiciary Committee report on South Korea's alleged discrimination against American companies "unilaterally reflects only Coupang Inc's claims." [Yonhap]
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Park Il speaks at a regular briefing at the Government Seoul Building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on Wednesday, saying the ministry "expresses regret" that a US House Judiciary Committee report on South Korea's alleged discrimination against American companies "unilaterally reflects only Coupang Inc's claims." [Yonhap]

The South Korean government said Thursday that the White House's assertion that Seoul is targeting Coupang Inc has not been formally conveyed through any diplomatic authority or channel.

A Foreign Ministry official made the remarks in response to a recent interim report by the US House Judiciary Committee — dubbed the "Coupang report" — which claimed the South Korean government has been discriminating against Coupang Inc and other American companies. "Since we view the report as biased, we will make efforts to explain our position to the US side," the official said.

The official said many important issues are currently under discussion — including security, strategic investment and shipbuilding cooperation — and that it would "never be desirable" for South Korea and the United States to waste diplomatic energy and time on the Coupang matter. "We will explain our position to the House, and there will be opportunities to speak with the White House, the Department of State, or other executive authorities," the official said.

The House Judiciary Committee had earlier released the interim report under the names of its Republican chairman and the chairman of its regulatory reform subcommittee, claiming the South Korean government was discriminating against Coupang Inc and other US companies.

A White House official then told South Korean media that the Donald Trump administration was "deeply concerned about the South Korean government's discriminatory targeting of American technology companies," adding that "by any reasonable standard, the Lee Jae Myung government is singling out Coupang."

The White House's statement in effect lent weight to the House Judiciary Committee report, which largely reflected Coupang Inc's one-sided account.

The South Korean government also pushed back against attempts to link the report or the White House's remarks to the broader state of the bilateral relationship, characterizing the White House's response as a routine reply prompted by inquiries from South Korean media.

There are also indications that the report may be the product of sustained lobbying by Coupang Inc.

The office of Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee and one of the report's authors, received a $1,000 contribution from CouPAC — Coupang Inc's political action committee — in January, just three weeks before the investigation was launched.

CouPAC also donated $5,000 to the office of House Speaker Mike Johnson in March, while the Judiciary Committee investigation was still ongoing.

The government plans to step up communication with the US side, calculating that Washington also has no interest in allowing the matter to cast a shadow over the broader bilateral relationship.

The Foreign Ministry had already expressed regret over the report. Spokesperson Park Il said Wednesday that the report's claim that South Korea has "continued discriminatory investigations and unjust regulation" against Coupang Inc "does not reflect the facts." Park added that while the government had been communicating with the House Judiciary Committee and faithfully explaining its position, it "expresses regret that the report unilaterally reflects only Coupang Inc's claims."


moone@heraldcorp.com