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At a time when artificial intelligence is rapidly becoming the backbone of modern industry, the question facing the United States is no longer whether to lead in AI, but how to scale that leadership across the real economy. In that effort, deeper cooperation with South Korea may prove to be one of America’s most underappreciated strategic advantages. The United States remains the global leader in foundational AI technologies—advanced algorithms, frontier models, and semiconductor design. Korea, meanwhile, excels in something equally critical but often overlooked: industrial deployment. From smart manufacturing and robotics to memory semiconductors, consumer electronics, and next-generation mobility, Korea has built one of the world’s most sophisticated industrial ecosystems. Bringing these two strengths together is not just good diplomacy; it is sound industrial strategy. For American manufacturers, AI is no longer an abstract technology confined to Silicon Valley. It is a tool for improving yields in semiconductor fabs, predicting failures in industrial equipment, optimizing logistics, and reducing energy consumption in factories. Korean firms have spent years integrating AI into large-scale production environments where precision, speed, and reliability are non-negotiable. U.S.–Korea collaboration allows American industry to move faster from laboratory innovation to factory-floor impact. Semiconductors are a prime example. Advanced AI models depend on high-performance memory and manufacturing expertise—areas where Korean companies are global leaders. Joint research, co-investment, and talent exchange between U.S. AI developers and Korean chipmakers strengthen America’s entire AI supply chain, reducing vulnerabilities while accelerating innovation in data centers, autonomous systems, and defense technologies. The benefits extend beyond hardware. Korea’s experience in deploying AI across transportation, smart cities, healthcare systems, and heavy industry offers practical blueprints for the United States as it modernizes aging infrastructure. AI-driven traffic management, predictive maintenance for power grids, and automated quality control in manufacturing are not future concepts in Korea—they are already operating at scale. American industries can shorten their learning curve by working with partners who have already solved real-world deployment challenges. From a geopolitical standpoint, Korea–U.S. AI cooperation also reinforces a trusted technology bloc at a time of intensifying global competition. Building interoperable standards, secure data-sharing frameworks, and joint governance norms ensures that AI innovation aligns with democratic values while strengthening supply chain resilience. For U.S. industry, this translates into greater predictability, safer markets, and long-term investment confidence. Critically, this partnership is not about outsourcing American innovation. It is about amplifying it. By combining U.S. leadership in core AI research with Korea’s proven ability to industrialize advanced technologies, the United States can accelerate productivity growth, enhance global competitiveness, and anchor high-value manufacturing at home. As AI reshapes every sector—from aerospace and defense to automobiles and advanced manufacturing—the next phase of American industrial strength will depend on alliances that deliver results, not slogans. Cooperation with South Korea offers exactly that: a practical, scalable path to ensuring that AI leadership translates into tangible industrial power for the United States. In the global race for AI-driven industry, the smartest move America can make may be to run it together with Korea.

Standing on a vast development site in Clarksville, Tennessee, South Korea’s Korea Zinc is making one of the boldest industrial bets yet on the future of America’s critical minerals supply chain. The company has entered a strategic partnership with the U.S. government to jointly invest in a large-scale smelter project valued at approximately 11 trillion won. Of that, around $6.6 billion will be invested directly into the Tennessee facility, while total funding—including operating capital and financing costs—will reach roughly $7.4 billion. Construction is set to begin after site preparation starts in 2026, with Korea Zinc targeting completion by 2029. Once online, the smelter will ramp up operations in phases before entering full commercial production. At peak capacity, the plant will process about 1.1 million tons of raw materials annually and turn out roughly 540,000 tons of finished products. What will come out of this facility goes well beyond traditional metals. The production lineup includes 13 different materials—ranging from zinc, lead, and copper to precious metals like gold and silver, as well as strategic minerals such as antimony, indium, bismuth, palladium, gallium, and germanium. These materials are essential for industries spanning aerospace, defense, semiconductors, electric vehicles, and next-generation technologies. Korea Zinc plans to transplant the core of its success in South Korea directly to the U.S. The company will apply the same world-leading non-ferrous smelting technology and operational know-how used at its flagship Onsan Smelter, widely regarded as the most advanced facility of its kind globally. Key engineers and operational staff from Onsan will be dispatched early to the U.S. site to stabilize operations and minimize technological risk from day one. Once production begins, the U.S. smelter is expected to generate more than 5.6 trillion won in annual revenue starting in 2030. For Washington, the project represents a concrete step toward reshaping global critical mineral supply chains that have long been heavily dependent on China. For Korea Zinc, the Tennessee facility serves as a strategic North American hub—one that strengthens both business stability and long-term growth. Senior figures in the Trump administration were quick to welcome the move. U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick described the project as “a landmark deal that fundamentally changes America’s critical minerals landscape,” adding that the United States will be able to domestically produce 13 critical and strategic minerals essential to aerospace and defense, semiconductors, artificial intelligence, quantum computing, automobiles, industrial manufacturing, and national security. Steve Feinberg, Deputy Secretary of Defense, echoed that view. “President Trump has made it clear that critical minerals are strategic assets vital to both defense and economic security,” he said. “This new smelter will create 750 American jobs and act as a force multiplier—ensuring a steady, bottleneck-free supply of strategic minerals across aerospace, defense, electronics, and advanced manufacturing.” Korea Zinc Chairman Choi Yoon-bum emphasized that the project marks a turning point for the company. “With the construction of an integrated smelter in the United States, Korea Zinc will solidify its role as a strategic partner supplying critical minerals essential to aerospace and defense,” he said. “This will significantly elevate both corporate and shareholder value.” He also stressed that the U.S. investment will not come at the expense of jobs or investment in South Korea. As heavy equipment prepares to move onto the Clarksville site, Korea Zinc’s U.S. smelter is fast emerging as a symbol of deepening industrial ties between Seoul and Washington—and a major pillar in America’s push for supply chain security.

WASHINGTON — What began as a festive White House gathering quickly turned into a moment of personal announcements for several prominent figures in former President Donald Trump’s political orbit, as engagement news rippled through the crowd and lit up conservative social media. Donald Trump Jr., the former president’s eldest son, confirmed his engagement during the event, marking the third such milestone in his personal life. Trump Jr. married his first wife, Vanessa Trump, in 2005. The couple had five children before divorcing in 2018. In the years that followed, he was publicly linked to Kimberly Guilfoyle, then a high-profile Trump ally and now a former Greek ambassador, with whom he parted ways ahead of the most recent presidential election. Guilfoyle herself is no stranger to political spotlight. She was previously married to California Governor Gavin Newsom, now positioning himself as a leading Democratic figure and a frequent political foil to Trump — a detail not lost on attendees quietly swapping observations on the White House lawn. Trump Jr.’s fiancée, Anderson, is a model and socialite with deep establishment roots. She is the daughter of Harry Roy Anderson Jr., who once made headlines as the youngest bank president in U.S. history. Friends say Anderson has followed her parents’ example by remaining deeply involved in charitable causes. Speaking after the celebration, Anderson struck an emotional tone. “I feel like the luckiest woman in the world to be marrying the love of my life,” she said. “It was an unforgettable weekend. I’m incredibly grateful.” The same weekend also brought another surprise announcement from the MAGA universe. On the 15th, Republican Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene and Brian Glen, a White House correspondent for the conservative outlet Real America’s Voice, revealed their engagement. Greene, once among Trump’s most vocal and visible allies in Congress, has recently found herself in a more complicated political position. After being labeled a “betrayer” by Trump, she announced plans to resign from her House seat in January 2026 — a dramatic turn for a lawmaker who once embodied the combative media style of the Trump era. She gained renewed attention earlier this year during Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to the White House, when she sharply asked, “Why aren’t you wearing a suit?” — a remark that spread rapidly across conservative and liberal media alike. Despite her rift with Trump, the former president appeared to signal continued goodwill toward Glen during a recent event, offering a brief but pointed endorsement: “I like you,” he said, drawing murmurs from the audience. Greene and Glen began dating in 2023. Glen, speaking to acquaintances, described Greene in almost mythic terms, calling her “a mystical figure — like a unicorn.” As the celebration wound down, the announcements underscored a familiar dynamic of the Trump era: politics, media, and personal lives intertwined, with even moments of romance unfolding under the bright lights of national power.

WASHINGTON — Standing beneath the bright lights of the White House on the evening of the 17th, U.S. President Donald Trump delivered an 18-minute nationally televised address aimed squarely at American voters uneasy about the economy. With midterm elections looming next year and inflation still weighing on household budgets, Trump cast himself as the architect of a dramatic turnaround — and his predecessor as the source of the nation’s troubles. “I inherited a country in chaos from Joe Biden,” Trump said, speaking with characteristic emphasis. “In just 11 months, we turned it into the top-performing nation in the world.” The speech came at a politically sensitive moment. Recent opinion polls show public approval of Trump’s economic management at its lowest point across both his first and second terms. Against that backdrop, the president used the address as a preemptive counteroffensive, placing the issue of affordability — expected to dominate next year’s midterm campaign — front and center. Trump repeatedly returned to the theme of blame, arguing that soaring prices and stagnant living standards were legacies of the previous Democratic administration. “When I took office, inflation was the worst in 48 years,” he said. “Prices were at record highs, and life had become unaffordable for millions of Americans. That all happened under Democrats.” Calling his administration’s record “unprecedented,” Trump claimed that no government in U.S. history had delivered as many positive changes in such a short period. “I inherited a mess,” he said flatly. “And I’m fixing it.” To bolster his argument, the president rattled off a series of eye-catching statistics. Thanksgiving turkey prices, he said, are down 33% compared with last year. Egg prices, he added, have plunged 82% since March. “For the first time in years,” Trump claimed, “wages are rising much faster than inflation. And this is just the beginning.” He also touted job creation and investment, asserting that all new jobs since his inauguration have come from the private sector and that the United States has attracted a record $18 trillion in investment. “Companies are coming back,” he said. “A year ago, our country was almost dead. Now, it’s the strongest economy in the world.” Looking ahead, Trump promised tangible relief for households. Beginning next year, he said, families will fully benefit from recent tax cuts, saving an average of $12,000 annually. He predicted that next spring would bring “the largest tax refund season in American history,” driven by tariffs and newly passed tax legislation. Trump also signaled major changes in monetary and housing policy. He said he would soon announce a new Federal Reserve chair — set to take office next May — who supports aggressive interest rate cuts. “Mortgage payments will come down even more starting early next year,” he said, adding that his administration plans to roll out “the most aggressive housing reform policy in U.S. history.” Two names are widely seen as front-runners for the Fed post: Kevin Hassett, chair of the White House National Economic Council and a longtime Trump advisor, and Kevin Warsh, a former Federal Reserve governor. Trump has repeatedly criticized current Fed Chair Jerome Powell for resisting pressure to cut rates. Before concluding, Trump announced a symbolic gesture tied to next year’s 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Every U.S. soldier, he said, will receive a stipend of $1,776 — a number chosen to echo the nation’s founding year. As the cameras cut away, the message was clear: with economic anxiety rising and political stakes even higher, Trump is betting that a forceful narrative of recovery — and a familiar assignment of blame — will resonate with voters heading into a decisive election year.

The passage of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for the next fiscal year by the U.S. Congress on Dec. 17, which includes provisions limiting any reduction in U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), is widely seen as an effort to underscore Washington’s view of South Korea as a top-tier ally. Once formally enacted with President Donald Trump’s signature, the NDAA will prohibit the U.S. government from using congressionally approved defense funds to reduce the number of U.S. troops stationed in South Korea below the current level of approximately 28,500. The legislation also bars the use of funds to complete the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) in any manner that deviates from plans jointly agreed upon by Washington and Seoul. While the law includes a waiver provision allowing the restrictions to be lifted after 60 days, this is contingent on the administration reporting to the relevant congressional committees that such changes would serve U.S. national security interests and that sufficient consultations have been conducted with South Korea, Japan, and other allies contributing militarily to the United Nations Command. Observers note that the breadth of these reporting requirements is expected to function as a significant safeguard against abrupt policy shifts. The debate over USFK troop levels is closely tied to the Trump administration’s broader security doctrine of “strategic flexibility,” which emphasizes the ability to redeploy U.S. forces worldwide—including those stationed in South Korea—as mobile strike assets rather than having them fixed to specific regions. Reflecting this view, the U.S. administration previously issued a statement opposing the provision ahead of the NDAA’s passage in the Senate, arguing that it unduly constrains the president’s authority as commander in chief. Adam Kozlowski, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, said the Senate’s approval of the bill reflects “strong, or at least justified, concern that the Trump administration could pursue excessive reductions in U.S. troop levels in South Korea.” He added that the measure is intended to reaffirm Washington’s commitment to the U.S.–South Korea alliance. At the same time, the Atlantic Council noted that critics argue the provision could undermine the ability of USFK and U.S. Indo-Pacific Command to adjust force posture flexibly in response to a rapidly evolving security environment. According to this view, the restrictions impede a “conditions-based” approach that allows troop levels and modernization decisions to be adjusted as circumstances change. Kozlowski echoed this concern, warning that “reassurance based solely on troop numbers can come at the expense of regional readiness and operational effectiveness.” For similar reasons, the NDAA also prevents U.S. troop levels in Europe from being reduced below 76,000. As with South Korea, however, exceptions are permitted if the Department of Defense consults in advance with NATO allies and demonstrates to Congress that any such reductions would not pose a threat to U.S. national security.