As he left the White House for a campaign rally in Alabama on Friday, Donald Trump was asked by a reporter if he had “jumped the gun” by announcing on Wednesday that South Korea had agreed to pay for a $54bn natural gas pipeline in Alaska, only for a Korean official to contradict him on Thursday, saying that Korea had only agreed to “initiate a review” of the possible investment. This was reported by Qazaqyia.kz citing The Guardian.
“No, I didn’t jump the gun,” Trump replied. “Let’s see if they don’t want to do it. That’s okay with me. I’ll just charge them more.”
When he announced the pipeline project in an Oval Office ceremony on Wednesday, the president claimed that the Korean investment was part of a deal he struck in 2025, to lower tariffs on imports from South Korea in return for billions of dollars of investments in the US.
“They said they didn’t sign it?” Trump asked the reporter on Friday. “Tell them if they don’t sign shortly, I’m going to double it up, okay?”
Thus, the US president indicated he is prepared to double tariffs if South Korea does not sign the agreement. This statement may signal a further escalation of trade and economic tensions between the two countries.
It is worth noting that in 2025, Trump presented the deal with South Korea as a major achievement of his trade policy. At that time, the tariff reduction was contingent on South Korea investing billions of dollars in the US economy. However, the Korean side now says it only agreed to “initiate a review” of the investment, which contradicts Trump’s Wednesday announcement.
Trump’s statement once again demonstrates his tough stance toward US trading partners. He has repeatedly raised tariffs to advance his demands in trade negotiations. South Korea has not yet officially announced a concrete decision on the pipeline project.
The $54bn natural gas pipeline project in Alaska is considered one of the large-scale initiatives aimed at developing US energy infrastructure. If South Korea does not invest in the project, according to Trump, he is ready to double the tariffs. This situation could affect the future of trade negotiations between the two countries.
The development of events is still unknown. Trump made these statements before departing for the rally in Alabama. The South Korean side has not officially responded. International experts assess this statement as a continuation of the tough US trade policy.