Marking the 10th Anniversary of the ROK-U.S. Free Trade Agreement: Strengthening Economic and Technology Ties

On Monday, July 18, 2022 from 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Pacific, Asia Society Northern California will host Wendy Cutler, Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute and Jong-Hoon Kim, Former Trade Minister for the Republic of Korea, in a dialogue Marking the 10th Anniversary of the ROK-U.S. Free Trade Agreement: Strengthening Economic and Technology Ties in San Francisco. This program will be moderated by James Green, Director of Government Affairs and Public Policy at Google.

Sangsoo Yoon, Consul General for the Republic of Korea in San Francisco, will give opening remarks. 

This program is complimentary and open to Asia Society Members only.  In order to gain access to this program, you must be an active Asia Society Northern California member.  Learn more and become a member today: https://asiasociety.org/northern-california/join-our-community

Groundbreaker and Innovator Members will be invited to a private VIP Reception from 4:30 p.m. - 5:00 p.m. Pacific. The VIP Reception is a special benefit for our Groundbreaker and Innovator Members. To become a Groundbreaker or Innovator Member, visit our Membership page: https://asiasociety.org/northern-california/join-our-community

AGENDA

Date: Monday, July 18, 2022 from 5:30 p.m. - 6:30 p.m. Pacific

• 4:30 p.m.     VIP Reception for Groundbreaker and Innovator Members
• 5:00 p.m.     Registration & Networking
• 5:30 p.m.     Program Begins
• 6:30 p.m.     Program Concludes, Exit Venue

Venue: Palace Hotel, San Francisco

All guests must show ID and proof of vaccination before entry. Masks are encouraged. 

SPEAKER BIOS

Wendy Cutler is Vice President at the Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI) and the managing director of the Washington, D.C. office. In these roles, she focuses on leading initiatives that address challenges related to trade, investment, and innovation, as well as women’s empowerment in Asia. She joined ASPI following an illustrious career of nearly three decades as a diplomat and negotiator in the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR), where she also served as Acting Deputy U.S. Trade Representative. During her USTR career, she worked on a range of bilateral, regional, and multilateral trade negotiations and initiatives, including the U.S.-Korea Free Trade Agreement, the Trans-Pacific Partnership, U.S.-China negotiations, and the WTO Financial Services negotiations. She has published a series of ASPI papers on the Asian trade landscape and serves as a regular media commentator on trade and investment developments in Asia and the world. 

Jong-Hoon Kim is a retired career diplomat with 38 years of experience in foreign service and trade issues, with key postings in Washington D.C., San Francisco, Geneva, Canada, France and Burkina Faso among other locales. He led the Korea-U.S. FTA as the chief negotiator in 2006 and half-way through 2007. From August 2007 through December 2011, Mr. Kim worked extensively on Korea’s bilateral and multilateral trade-related issues as the longest serving Minister for Trade of Korea. During his tenure he concluded and put in place FTAs with India, the EU, Peru and the United States. In addition, Mr. Kim's dedicated services as the SOM (Senior Officials' Meeting) chair were instrumental for the success of APEC 2005 held in Busan, Korea.

In April 2012, Mr. Kim was elected in the general elections as a candidate of then ruling party (conservative) and served for 4 years as a member of the National Assembly.

He has been serving as an independent director of the board of SK Innovation since 2017 and chairman thereof since 2021.

Mr. Kim earned his business administration degree from Yonsei University in 1978 upon having fulfilled two and a half year of military service as a sergeant of KATUSA (Korean Augmentation to the U.S. Army). He is married and has one son. His hobbies include paragliding, kite boarding and off-road motorcycling.  

Sangsoo Yoon is a seasoned diplomat of the Republic of Korea and has served as Consul General of the Republic of Korea in San Francisco since November 2020. Prior to this, he assumed the position of Ambassador for International Relations of Incheon Metropolitan City in May 2019 and served as Consul General of the Republic of Korea in Sydney. CG Yoon also worked as Minister of the Korean Embassy in Malaysia, as Counsellor of the Korean Embassy in the Hellenic Republic, and First Secretary of the Korean Permanent Mission to the UN Office and Other International Organizations in Geneva, Switzerland. He also took on various positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Korea; Director of the Economic Cooperation Division, Director of the International Energy and Logistics Division, Director of the Trade Policy Planning and Public Relations Division, Director of the Trade Dispute Settlement Division, and Dean of Planning and Assessment of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy. CG Yoon received an LL.B. from Seoul National University, Korea and an LL.M. from Georgetown Law School, United States. 

James Green (Moderator) is a Director of Government Affairs and Public Policy at Google, where he covers international policy for the company’s hardware business.  He has worked for over two decades on U.S.-Asia relations for the U.S. Government and in the private sector. From 2013-2018, he served as the Minister Counselor for Trade Affairs (USTR) at the U.S. Embassy in Beijing where he addressed market access barriers, technology policy, and investment restrictions. In addition to his government service on the National Security Council and on the Secretary of State's Policy Planning Staff, James ran the government relations department at the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai and was a senior vice president at an international consultancy in Washington, DC.  A graduate of Brown University and the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS), James speaks proficient Mandarin and passable Italian.  After his most recent government service, James started a podcast at Georgetown University, speaking with former officials on how to handle a rising China – former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright’s episode may be the most charming.

SPONSORED BY THE CONSULATE GENERAL OF THE REPUBLIC OF KOREA IN SAN FRANCISCO