Trump Jr. meets Korean business leaders in Seoul

Donald Trump Jr., the eldest son of former U.S. President Donald Trump, began his first official engagements in South Korea on Tuesday with a meeting with Chung Yong-jin, chairman of Shinsegae Group. Chung arrived at 7:20 a.m. in the underground parking garage of the Josun Palace hotel in Seoul’s Gangnam district, about 10 hours after hosting Trump Jr. for dinner at his home in Pangyo, Seongnam, the previous evening.

Among the South Korean business leaders who met with Trump Jr. were Kim Dong-kwan, vice chairman of Hanwha Group, and his two younger brothers. The Kim brothers arrived early for a private meeting at the hotel. Around 8:45 a.m., Kim Dong-won, president of Hanwha Life Insurance, and Kim Dong-sun, executive vice president of Hanwha Galleria and head of future strategy at Hotel & Resort, were spotted leaving with takeaway coffee from the hotel café.

Sources said they discussed potential U.S. partnerships in Hanwha’s core businesses: defense, shipbuilding, and energy — areas overseen by Vice Chairman Kim. Dong-won heads the group’s financial operations, while Dong-sun focuses on retail, robotics, and semiconductor equipment.

CJ Group Chairman Lee Jay-hyun also held talks with Trump Jr. CJ CheilJedang, the group’s food arm, acquired U.S. company Schwan’s in 2019 and now operates 20 production facilities across the United States. The U.S. accounts for about 80% of CJ’s overseas food revenue, making it a critical market.

With Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin on a business trip to Indonesia, his son Shin Yoo-yeol, head of Lotte Holdings’ future growth division, represented the conglomerate in talks with Trump Jr.

Naver founder and board chairman Lee Hae-jin also met with Trump Jr. for about an hour to discuss artificial intelligence and global expansion. Their talks reportedly covered Naver’s generative AI platform HyperCLOVA X, partnerships with U.S. tech companies, and plans to enter the American market.

Trump Jr. is scheduled to continue one-on-one meetings with Korean business leaders throughout the day before departing late Tuesday night.


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