A trade deal between the United States and Vietnam has marked the first full pact President Donald Trump has sealed with an Asian nation, but has also raised fears that it could provoke a new standoff between the US and China.South Korean President Lee Jae-myung, who came to power last month on a platform of pursuing pragmatic diplomacy with both the US and China, indicated on Thursday that it remained unclear whether tariff negotiations between Washington and Seoul would be concluded by next week’s deadline.
Vietnam has the third-biggest trade surplus with the US of any country after China and Mexico, and was targeted with a 46 percent rate, one of the highest in Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariff blitz on April 2.
Analysts say the US-Vietnam trade deal may give a glimpse of the template Washington will use with other Asian countries still scrambling for accords, including South Korea, Japan and Thailand.
Speaking at his first news conference on Thursday since taking office on June 4, Lee said the tariff negotiations with the US have been “clearly not easy” and stressed that the countries must reach mutually beneficial outcomes.
“It’s difficult to say with certainty whether we will be able to reach a conclusion by July 8. We are now doing our best,” Lee said. ”What we need is a truly reciprocal outcome that benefits both sides and works for ev …
