Hundreds join South Korean unions, peace groups for march in NYC amid tense US-ROK tariff negotiations 

Trade unionists and peace activists from South Korea joined over 130 US organizations in New York City for a historic march against US military and economic exploitation of the Korean people.

[New York, NY] – About 600 people marched from Times Square to Herald Square in Midtown Manhattan on Sunday, July 27th, which marked the 72nd anniversary of the Korean War Armistice, to protest US military and economic exploitation in South Korea. The mobilization coincided with demonstrations in South Korea that occurred on the same day to protest Trump’s tariff threats, US-led joint military exercises, and US integration of South Korea into the New Cold War against China. The New York mobilization sought to demonstrate solidarity with the South Korean peace movement and present international popular unity against war and economic coercion.

Representatives from the Korean Alliance for Progressive Movement, the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the Korean Peasants League, and over a dozen other South Korean civil society and peace groups participated in the New York march. The mobilization was organized as part of the conclusion to the People’s Summit for Korea. Speakers from the Korean Alliance for Progressive Movement, a coalition of over 80 South Korean civil society groups, and the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, which represents more than a million South Korean workers, addressed the threats Trump’s tariffs pose to the South Korean economy, as well as the escalation of US military activity and its effects on regional security and South Korea’s sovereignty.

The newly-elected Lee Jae Myung administration in South Korea is engaged in tense negotiations with the White House over Trump’s plans to place a 25% tariff on South Korean goods beginning on August 1. As part of negotiations, the Trump administration is demanding South Korea increase payments to the US under the Special Measures Agreement from $1.13 to $10 billion a year. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has also called for South Korea to raise its annual defense spending to 5% of GDP, which would be about $87 billion. Other topics of concern include opening South Korea’s market to rice imports from the US, and purchases of US liquid natural gas.

The tariff threats have led to an increase in anti-US sentiment in South Korea. Civic organizations have also held demonstrations at the US embassy in Seoul and in other South Korean cities to protest the tariffs and Trump’s demands for increased South Korean defense spending and Special Measures Agreement payments. Workers at General Motors factories in South Korea have engaged in partial strikes to protest the possibility of plant closures resulting from Trump’s tariffs. 

While President Trump has described South Korea as a “money machine” that benefits from US military protection, peace organizations and civic groups in the country have long criticized the US record of military violence against civilian residents near US bases, environmental pollution, and interference in South Korea domestic politics and foreign relations. According to the South Korean Ministry of Defense, direct and indirect costs from South Korea for the US military presence already amounted to 3.44 trillion won, or USD $2.48 billion, in 2022. 

The Trump administration’s overtures towards the North Korean government have been notably rejected since the former assumed office this January. South Korean peace groups continue to call attention to the fact that the sharp increase in US military activity in Korea since 2022 has made diplomatic engagement impossible. This July, the US, South Korea, and Japan held their first-ever trilateral aerial exercise in international airspace close to Korea, featuring the use of US nuclear-capable B-52H Stratofortress bombers. Last year, the US-ROK Nuclear Consultative Group held its first-ever joint military tabletop exercise to discuss the deployment and use of US nuclear strategic assets in Korea. According to independent South Korean journalist Jang Chang-jun, US Forces Korea conducted 200 days of military drills in Korea in 2023, and 275 days of drills in 2024.

Ham Jae-Gyu, Vice Chairman of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, said, “Inter-Korean relations have completely broken down due to the previous Yoon Seok Yul administration’s breach of the September 19 Military Agreement, as well as the moves by Japan, South Korea, and the US to form a military alliance for the purpose of war. We demand the US cease its hostility against China, Russia, and the DPRK. South Korea is not a war base for the US. War must be prevented and peace must be realized through the solidarity of the entire world. Neither the Korean Peninsula or any other region in the world should be used for the purposes of US wars. All the world’s people should come together to realize peace, independence, and equality among nations.”

Karina Hwang, an organizer with Nodutdol for Korean Community Development, said, “We’re proud to join with South Korea’s leading labor and civil society organizations to stand up to US military and economic exploitation of the Korean people. For 72 years, the US has refused to end the Korean War with a lasting peace agreement. By keeping Korea in a perpetual state of frozen conflict, the US has justified a massive permanent military occupation at the expense of the Korean people. Now, the Trump administration is using tariff threats to try to raise those costs for the Korean people. It’s time for Koreans to stand up to US bullying and demand the US withdraw its troops, weapons systems, and military bases.”

Lee Yeonhee, a representative from South Korea’s Action for Peace Sovereignty Beyond Peace organization, said, “I was deeply moved by the solidarity and action of many Korean Americans, youth, and American organizations on the issue of peace in Korea. Today marks the 72nd anniversary of the signing of the 1953 armistice on the Korean Peninsula. The war is not over yet, and the crisis on the Korean Peninsula is growing. We do not want war. The United States must immediately cease all war plans on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia.”

Munjo Ro, an organizer with Korea Peace Now! Grassroots Network, said,“We join in solidarity with the masses calling for an end to forever war in Korea. The United States has posed the greatest obstacle to advancing a peace agreement for over 70 years. We join the call for U.S. out of Korea, and call for lasting peace on the peninsula!”

Press Inquiries:  Ju-Hyun Park – media@nodutdol.org