Shinsegae Group chairman Chung Yong-jin returns after meeting with Trump

[Anchor]

The chairman of Shinsegae Group, Chung Yong-jin, who revealed that he met with President-elect Trump in the United States, returned to Korea today (Dec. 22).

He mentioned that Trump's side showed a lot of interest in the situation in Korea, but refrained from discussing the specific content of their conversation.

This is a report by reporter Jo Eun-ae.

[Report]

Chung Yong-jin, the chairman of Shinsegae Group, was the first among domestic political and business figures to publicly disclose his meeting with President-elect Trump. There was significant interest in him serving as a bridge between Korea and the upcoming Trump administration, but he carefully drew a line.

[Chung Yong-jin/Shinsegae Group Chairman: "I didn't think that far. As a businessman, I am trying to do my best in my position."]

Chairman Chung stated that he had a diverse and in-depth conversation with Trump for about 10 to 15 minutes, but added that it was difficult to disclose the content.

However, he reported that Trump's side showed interest in the situation in Korea.

[Chung Yong-jin/Shinsegae Group Chairman: "They expressed interest in the situation in Korea. I told them that Korea is a resilient country, so please wait, and that we will return to normal soon, and that was all I said."]

Chairman Chung stayed at Trump's residence in Florida at the invitation of Trump's eldest son and influential figure, Donald Trump Jr., with whom he has a close relationship.

It is known that he extended his original schedule by two days.

He also revealed that he met with Trump's close associates, including Tesla CEO Elon Musk.

President-elect Trump has been continuing meetings with CEOs of major global companies at his residence.

Recently, he made headlines by warmly hosting Masayoshi Son, the chairman of Japan's SoftBank, who promised an investment of about 140 trillion won.

[Donald Trump/President-elect of the United States: "(Instead of 100 billion dollars), would you make it 200 billion dollars? Believe it or not, he can actually afford to do that if he wants to. Would you do that?"]

The demand from the United States, which is calling for protectionism while fervently seeking investment, is expected to intensify.

Companies are putting their all into reaching a point of agreement with Trump's side.

This is KBS News, Jo Eun-ae.