Posted on August 11, 2025
Moves to revise century-old shipmaking laws aim to strengthen US and allied naval capabilities
Korea’s “Make American Shipbuilding Great Again” strategy, or “MASGA,” is gaining momentum as the two countries recently agreed on the need for legal changes in the United States to allow more practical shipbuilding collaboration.
According to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration on Friday, Vice Minister Kang Hwan-seug met with Jason Potter, assistant secretary of the US Navy’s research, development and acquisition, in Washington earlier in the week and discussed cooperation in naval shipbuilding and maintenance, repair and overhaul services.
Korean officials told Potter about ways Korea’s shipbuilding industry could help maintain and strengthen the US Navy, such as by producing block modules for ships and delivering them to US shipyards for final assembly.
DAPA said the two sides agreed that regulations, such as the Byrnes-Tollefson Act, which requires US warships to be built at US shipyards, need to be eased to allow more shipbuilding cooperation. They decided to set up a new working-level group to discuss the specifics further.
US lawmakers have also been taking action to expand shipbuilding ties with US allies.
US Reps. Ed Case of Hawaii and Jim Moylan of Guam proposed the Merchant Marine Allies Partnership bill on Aug. 1. The bill would provide exemptions to the Merchant Marine Act of 1920, known as the Jones Act, which limits domestic shipping to US-built, US-flagged vessels that are owned by US citizens and crewed by permanent US residents.
One key change would waive the current 50 percent import duty on major vessel modifications, as long as the work is performed at shipyards in US-allied countries such as South Korea. The legislation would allow ships built in those countries or operated by companies based there to take part in US domestic trade.
“According to the Grassroot Institute of Hawaii, maritime employment in the US shipbuilding and repair sector has declined by 15 percent over the past 23 years,” said Case. “The Merchant Marine Allies Partnership Act is a bipartisan, commonsense step toward maritime policy that reflects 21st-century challenges and opportunities.”
US Sen. Mike Lee of Utah presented the Ensuring Naval Readiness Act in February this year, aiming to authorize exceptions to the prohibition on the construction of US naval fleets at foreign shipyards.
Meanwhile, Lee So-young, a military judge, pointed out that the Korean government and companies should proactively support such efforts to amend US laws.
“Stakeholders in the US shipbuilding sector realize that outsourcing the construction US naval warships is a serious threat to the US shipbuilding industry and oppose the idea while demanding more investments in US shipbuilding infrastructure,” said Lee in an article published in the Journal of the Korea Association of Defense Industry Studies.
“The (Korean) government needs to strongly lobby and argue that it is better for the US if Korean shipbuilders take charge of building US warships. Korea should foster experts on US law and get advice on what steps to take during each phase of legislation.”
Lee added that Korean shipbuilders should look to secure an edge over Japanese and Indian rivals in advance as the competition is expected to heat up once the US warship market becomes open for overseas shipyards in allied countries.
Korea previously credited the MASGA initiative as one of the key factors in cutting a final tariff deal with the US late last month as US President Donald Trump repeatedly stressed his administration’s drive to revive the American shipbuilding sector. Seoul pledged a $150 billion shipbuilding cooperation fund for Korean shipbuilders to invest in the US and support the American shipbuilding sector’s revitalization.
