Minister Bessant said, "Korea, Japan, the UK, India, and Australia are negotiated first"
Maeil Business Newpaper | 15 April 2025
Minister Bessant said, "Korea, Japan, the UK, India, and Australia are negotiated first"
by YOON Inha
Minister Bessant said, "The country that agrees first is advantageous," and "Trump directly participates in the most important trading partners." WSJ "Korea, Japan, the UK, India, and Australia are negotiated first."
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessant, who leads U.S. Donald Trump’s administration’s trade negotiations, predicted trade negotiations with South Korea next week, stressing that countries that negotiate with the U.S. first could reach a more favorable agreement.
"There are negotiations with Vietnam last week, Japan on Wednesday (16th), and South Korea next week," Bessant said in an interview with Bloomberg TV on the 14th (local time).
Asked about Japan’s stance that it would not rush negotiations, he said, "I think there will be an advantage for our allies."
He continued, "There will be a first mover advantage," adding, "Usually the first person to reach a deal will reach the best agreement."
When asked which country would be the first to reach a deal with the United States, he replied, "It’s their choice."
Japan is set to negotiate with the United States on the 16th, but Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba told the House of Representatives Budget Committee on the same day, "I don’t think it’s a good idea to conclude negotiations quickly," indicating that he would not rush to an agreement.
Asked if he expected any countries to reach a deal before the end of the 90-day moratorium on mutual tariffs, Bessant said: "I think there could be a lot. "It may not be an actual trade (agreement) document, but we will make an agreement in principle and we will be able to move forward from there," he said.
This is interpreted as confirming the observation that the Trump administration, which is running out of time to sign a traditional trade agreement, will make a simplified form of agreement that includes promises to improve other countries’ trade balance and ease trade barriers.
Asked if the mutual tariffs could be eliminated completely through negotiations, Bessant said, "I say to countries, ’Get your best offer (A game)." I will see what I brought and start negotiations there," he said.
"We are moving very quickly with a number of our most important trading partners," he said. "Ultimately, President Trump will participate in negotiations with the most important trading partners."
Earlier, the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) also quoted sources as saying that the U.S. government is prioritizing negotiations with South Korea, the U.K., Australia, India and Japan.
According to reports, Besant told his allies that his top targets included the five countries and that he had been in contact with officials from each country.
