Trump announced a $54 billion energy investment from South Korea. South Korea said he jumped the gun

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South Korea has pushed back against a $54 billion investment announced by the Trump administration, turning a struggling project to export natural gas from Alaska into another potential sticking point in the allies’ long-running negotiations over trade.

On Wednesday Trump touted the figure as part of a broader agreement for Seoul to invest $200 billion in US energy in exchange for lower tariffs on South Korean goods.

But South Korea later said it had given no firm commitment to the Alaska project.

“Putting figures or using definitive language goes far beyond what was agreed,” Minister of Trade Industry and Resources Kim Jung-kwan said Thursday, according to South Korean news agency Yonhap.

According to a statement from the US Department of Commerce on Wednesday, South Korea and the US had agreed to “commence working” on the Alaska project, “subject to commercial reasonableness.” It gave no figure for how much South Korea would invest in it.

CNN has reached out to the US Department of Commerce for comment.

The discrepancy between official accounts indicates clashing priorities that could hinder further negotiations between Washington and Seoul.

Relations between the long-term allies have become strained since Trump returned to office, including over the arrest of nearly 500 people , mostly Korean nationals, during an ICE raid at a Hyundai plant in Georgia that sparked outrage back home. The car maker is one of South Korea’s largest companies.

In the US, energy security has become a focal point ahead of November’s midterm elections, as the war in Iran has hit global oil supply and increased the cost of gas and other everyday purchases.

And in Alaska, the pipeline project – estimated to cost between $45 and $55 billion – has entered the close Senate race between GOP incumbent Dan Sullivan and Democrat Mary Peltola.

On Wednesday, Sullivan’s office hailed what it described as the “historic $54 billion investment by South Korea” into the Alaska LNG project. CNN has called Sullivan’s office for further comment.

In a break from her party’s policies, Peltola has thrown her support behind the Alaska LNG project as way to lower energy costs for Alaskans.

South Korea is the world’s third-largest importer of liquefied natural gas. After the war in Iran disrupted Middle East supplies, Asian energy importers started buying more LNG from the US, which has become the world’s largest producer and exporter.

Kim, the Korean minister, said the country would carefully review whether to proceed with the Alaska LNG project. A joint statement said the US would facilitate the favorable involvement of Korean vendors if the project went through, and grant priority access to its LNG supply.

“The government will continue to put the national interest as priority and do its best to ensure that economic and trade relations between South Korea and the US develop into a stable and predictable partnership,” Kim added.

But the capital-intensive Alaska project, which would include 807 miles of pipeline and an LNG export facility, has been under development for over a decade and delayed by a lack of financing and purchase agreements.

Kent Nishimura/AFP/Getty Images

韩国对特朗普政府宣布的 540 亿美元投资计划表示反对，这使得原本举步维艰的阿拉斯加天然气出口项目成为美韩长期贸易谈判中的另一个潜在症结所在。

周三，特朗普称赞这一数字是首尔与美国达成的更广泛协议的一部分，该协议规定首尔将向美国能源领域投资 2000 亿美元，以换取降低韩国商品的关税。

但韩国后来表示，并未对阿拉斯加项目做出任何明确承诺。

据韩国联合通讯社报道，韩国贸易工业资源部长官金正冠周四表示：“给出具体数字或使用明确的措辞远远超出了双方商定的范围。”

美国商务部周三发表声明称，韩国和美国已同意“在商业合理性的前提下”开始推进阿拉斯加项目。声明没有透露韩国将在该项目上投资多少资金。

CNN已联系美国商务部寻求置评。

官方说法之间的差异表明双方优先事项存在冲突，这可能会阻碍华盛顿和首尔之间的进一步谈判。

自特朗普重返白宫以来，这两个长期盟友之间的关系日趋紧张，其中就包括美国移民及海关执法局（ICE）突袭现代汽车位于佐治亚州的工厂，逮捕近500人（大部分是韩国公民）一事，此事在韩国国内引发了强烈抗议。现代汽车是韩国最大的公司之一。

在美国，能源安全已成为11月中期选举前的焦点，因为伊朗战争打击了全球石油供应，并推高了汽油和其他日常用品的价格。

在阿拉斯加，这条输油管道项目——预计耗资 450 亿至 550 亿美元——已经卷入了共和党现任参议员丹·沙利文和民主党参议员玛丽·佩尔托拉之间势均力敌的参议院竞选。

周三，苏利文办公室对韩国向阿拉斯加液化天然气项目进行的“历史性540亿美元投资”表示欢迎。CNN已致电苏利文办公室寻求进一步置评。

与她所在政党的政策不同，佩尔托拉公开支持阿拉斯加液化天然气项目，认为这是降低阿拉斯加人能源成本的一种方式。

韩国是世界第三大液化天然气进口国。伊朗战争扰乱了中东的天然气供应后，亚洲能源进口国开始从美国购买更多液化天然气，而美国已成为世界上最大的液化天然气生产国和出口国。

韩国部长金正恩表示，韩国将认真评估是否推进阿拉斯加液化天然气项目。一份联合声明称，如果该项目得以实施，美国将为韩国供应商的参与提供便利，并优先保障韩国获得其液化天然气供应。

金正恩补充说：“政府将继续把国家利益放在首位，尽最大努力确保韩美经贸关系发展成为稳定、可预测的伙伴关系。”

但这项资本密集型的​​阿拉斯加项目，包括 807 英里的管道和一个液化天然气出口设施，已经开发了十多年，并因缺乏融资和购买协议而延误。