May 12, 2026
SEOUL – US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent plans to visit South Korea this week for talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng, ahead of the upcoming summit between US President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing.
The diplomatically unusual arrangement has sparked questions in Seoul over whether South Korea is being sidelined, as Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Koo Yun-cheol, Bessent’s South Korean counterpart, said Monday that no meeting with the US Treasury secretary had been arranged “at this point.”
At a press conference held in Sejong in the afternoon, Koo noted that the US Treasury secretary’s visit would be brief and appeared largely intended as a stopover ahead of the upcoming US-China summit. Bessent and Koo previously met in Washington on April 17 for talks on the foreign exchange market, critical minerals and broader economic cooperation.
Koo added that the two sides had already held extensive discussions during their meeting in April and could meet again soon on the sidelines of upcoming Group of Seven finance ministers and central bank governors’ meetings.
In a post on X on Monday, Bessent said he would depart for Japan and South Korea before heading to China for the Trump-Xi summit scheduled for Thursday and Friday.
“On Wednesday, I will stop in Seoul for a discussion with Vice Premier He Lifeng of China, before continuing on to Beijing for the Leaders’ Summit between President Trump and President Xi,” Bessent wrote. “Economic security is national security, and I look forward to a productive series of engagements as we work to advance President Trump’s America First Economic Agenda,” he added.
Sources within the Foreign Ministry in Seoul had earlier confirmed Bessent’s planned single-day trip to Seoul.
However, Bessent has yet to elaborate on why Seoul was chosen as the venue for the talks with He and why no detailed schedule for meetings with South Korean officials has been publicly disclosed.
The omission has drawn attention in diplomatic circles because Bessent publicly outlined meetings in Tokyo with Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama and representatives from the public and private sectors, while referring to Seoul primarily as the venue for high-level US-China consultations.
According to diplomatic sources, Bessent is expected to arrive in Seoul on Wednesday morning and depart for Beijing later that evening after meeting He.
Despite growing concerns, some observers noted that it is not unprecedented for Washington and Beijing to hold talks in a third country ahead of major negotiations. Treasury officials from the two countries previously met in London and Geneva for trade talks.
Others also suggested Washington may have wanted to avoid conducting final practical consultations in Beijing, while Beijing may have been reluctant to use Japan as a venue amid ongoing tensions with Tokyo.
“A decision on whether Bessent will meet South Korean government officials will likely be made only after his schedule with He is finalized,” a diplomatic source said.