Trump gov't releases maritime plan codifying 'historic' shipbuilding cooperation with Korea, Japan

WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump's administration unveiled an action plan Friday to rebuild America's shipbuilding industry, pledging to continue "historic" cooperation with Korea and Japan, and proposing a strategy enabling the first ships in a contract to be built in an allied foreign shipyard. The White House released "America's Maritime Action Plan," as Seoul and Washington are pushing to strengthen cooperation under the former's "Make American Shipbuilding Great Again (MASGA)" proposal as part of a bilateral trade and investment agreement. In April, Trump signed an executive order, titled "Restoring America's Maritime Dominance," which calls for drawing up the plan. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Director of the Office of Management and Budget Russell Vought, in coordination with other Cabinet members, developed the plan. The Trump administration has been keen on shoring up America's shipbuilding sector as China is known to have over 230 times the shipbuilding capacity of the United States in the midst of an intensifying Sino-U.S. strategic competition. "The United Sta