"The U.S.-Korea Partnership: Present and Future"

Trade between the U.S. and Korea reached $78.3 billion in 2006.  The U.S. is Korea’s number two trading partner, having recently been surpassed by China, which is now Korea’s main trading country. Korea is the seventh largest exporter to the U.S. and the fifth largest importer of U.S. agricultural products. Korea was Louisiana’s sixth largest export market in 2006 with total imports of $834 million from the state. U.S. investment in Korea totals $36 billion.

Amb. Lee has been the Republic of Korea’s Ambassador to the United States since November 2005. A career diplomat, he joined Korea's foreign service in 1973 and began his career with postings to Liberia, the Philippines, Austria, Yugoslavia, and the European Union. Prior to his current assignment in Washington, he served as Korea’s Ambassador to Israel, Ambassador to the United Kingdom, and Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade in Seoul. Amb. Lee holds degrees in international relations from Seoul National University and the School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University.