Biden to meet with President Yoon Suk Yeol in South Korea, tour Samsung factory amid North Korea provocations
Biden plans to highlight how US-South Korea economic cooperation benefits Americans as high inflation, supply chain issues continue to cloud his presidency
President Biden will meet with South Korea’s newly-elected President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul Friday where the two will tour the Samsung Electronics Pyeongtaek Campus.
The president left on Air Force One Thursday for his first visit to Asia as president.
The campus will be a model for a new Samsung factory being built in Texas, according to a White House release.
"The stop will demonstrate how our alliances deliver for the American middle class, investing in manufacturing in the United States, creating good-paying jobs and strengthening our supply chains," the White House said.
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This photo combination of two file photos shows U.S. President Joe Biden, right, in Washington, on May 15, 2022, and South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol in Seoul, on May 10, 2022. (Biden South Korea Asia trip / AP Newsroom)
The U.S. and South Korea are among each other’s largest trading partners, with South Korea putting more than $62 billion in direct investment in the United States.
Biden will also urge Congress to pass the Bipartisan Innovation Act during the Samsung tour, which will seek to tackle supply chain problems, among other things.
President Biden arrives at Osan Air Base in South Korea on May, 20, 2022. (Fox News)
The White House said it "will deliver historic federal investments in U.S. research and development, supply chains, and domestic manufacturing – including funding for the CHIPS Act to provide $52 billion to catalyze more private-sector investments and advance American technological leadership.
President Biden greets officials after arriving at Osan Air Base in South Korea on May 20, 2022. (Fox News)
"As the President has said, tackling inflation is his top economic priority, and making these investments will help lower costs by making our supply chains more resilient in the long term, protecting us against costly disruptions and higher prices for consumers."
BIDEN ON HIS FIRST ASIA TOUR AS PRESIDENT WILL VISIT SOUTH KOREA, JAPAN
FILE - President Joe Biden waves as he boards Air Force One for a trip to South Korea and Japan, on May 19, 2022, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe, File / AP Newsroom)
"I think (Biden's visit) will serve as an opportunity for the Korea-U.S. alliance to become stronger and more inclusive because there are many changes happening in the international community," Yoon told reporters Friday, according to Reuters.
President Biden leaves Air Force One after arriving at Osan Air Base in South Korea on May 20, 2022. (Fox News )
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This photo distributed by the North Korean government shows what it says a test-fire of a Hwasong-17 intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), at an undisclosed location in North Korea on March 24, 2022. (Korean Central News Agency/Korea News Service via AP, File / AP Newsroom)
The president’s trip, which will also include Japan, comes after a series of North Korean missile tests and amid the drawn-out war in Ukraine. Another weapons test could come while Biden is visiting.
President Biden arrives at Osan Air Base in South Korea on May 20, 2022. (Fox News)
Jake Sullivan, White House national security adviser, said U.S. alliances with South Korea and Japan would only "strengthen in the face of further provocations" from North Korea, according to Reuters.
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"We are prepared for those eventualities," he added.