Trucks run by containers at the Uiwang ICD Terminal in Uiwang, South Korea, Thursday, March 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 
A crane unloads a container from a truck at the Uiwang ICD Terminal in Uiwang, South Korea, Thursday, March 12, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon) 
The National Assembly passes a law to implement hundreds of billions of dollars in U.S. investments at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, March 12 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)
China expressed opposition to the move and called for negotiations to resolve any differences. “China opposes any form of unilateral tariff measures,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said in Beijing. “Tariff wars and trade wars serve no one’s interests.”
The South Korean law, which passed 226 to 8, calls for establishing a public corporation to manage the promised U.S. investments, including reviewing and selecting projects based on input from South Korean and U.S. trade authorities.
Some lawmakers spoke against the bill ahead of the vote, expressing frustration over Trump’s new trade investigations and the potential impact of the war in the Middle East, which has exposed the vulnerability of South Korea’s export-dependent economy and reliance on imported fuel.
“We cannot be the money machine Trump wants us to be,” said Son Sol, a member of the minor opposition Progressive Party. She said the bill does not give the legislature sufficient power to review and reject investments that could go against South Korean business or public interests.
Following months of tense negotiations, South Korea finalized an agreement with the United States in November to invest $200 billion in U.S. semiconductor and other high-tech industries and another $150 billion in shipbuilding in exchange for Washington lowering reciprocal tariffs on Seoul from 25% to 15%.
The agreement, which followed a breakthrough at an October summit between Trump and South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, also caps South Korean investments at $20 billion a year to protect the country’s foreign currency reserves.
Lee’s liberal Democratic Party introduced the legislation in November but faced resistance from opposition lawmakers worried about the economic impact. The legislative holdup frustrated Trump, who in January threatened to raise tariffs on South Korean autos, pharmaceuticals and other goods back to 25%, increasing pressure on the opposition to move the bill forward.
Associated Press writer Ken Moritsugu in Beijing contributed.