Trump Says US Steel Remains Under American Control After Nippon Partnership Deal

The partnership deal is expected to add $14 billion to the U.S. economy.

The U.S. Steel Clairton plant in Clairton, Pa., on April 8, 2024. Dominic Gwinn/Middle East Images via AFP via Getty Images

President Donald Trump said on May 25 that U.S. Steel will remain under American control despite its partnership deal with Japanese steelmaker Nippon Steel.

Speaking to reporters before boarding Air Force One, Trump suggested that Nippon Steel would have “partial ownership” of U.S. Steel, although he did not provide further details.

“It will be controlled by the United States, otherwise, I wouldn’t make the deal,” he told reporters at a New Jersey airport. “It’s an investment, and it’s a partial ownership, but it will be controlled by the USA.”

Trump announced on May 23 that U.S. Steel will keep its headquarters in Pittsburgh under a “planned partnership” with Nippon Steel. The deal is expected to add $14 billion to the U.S. economy and create at least 70,000 jobs in the United States, according to the president.

The majority of the investment is expected to happen in the next 14 months, Trump stated on his Truth Social social media platform, calling it “the largest investment in the history of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.”

U.S. Steel said that it “will remain American” and will expand “through a partnership with Nippon Steel that brings massive investment, new technologies and thousands of jobs over the next four years.”

Nippon Steel said the partnership is a game changer “for U.S. Steel and all of its stakeholders, including the American steel industry, and the broader American manufacturing base.”

The deal was first announced in December 2023, when Nippon Steel planned to acquire U.S. Steel for $14.9 billion, but it was blocked by then-President Joe Biden because of national security concerns.

Before leaving office in January, Biden announced that he would block Nippon Steel’s takeover of the company, citing the need to maintain a domestically owned steel industry.

Trump also opposed Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel during his 2024 presidential campaign, but he subsequently changed his stance on the deal after taking office.

On April 7, Trump issued a memorandum directing the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States to conduct a new review of the transaction and evaluate its potential national security risks.

David McCall, president of the United Steelworkers union, has voiced opposition to Nippon Steel’s proposed takeover of U.S. Steel, citing the Japanese company’s alleged violation of trade laws.

“It is simply absurd to think that we could ever entrust the future of one of our most vital industries—essential to both national defense and critical infrastructure — to a company whose unfair trade practices continue to this day,” McCall said in a May 22 statement.

The Epoch Times reached out to Nippon Steel for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

Nippon Steel has pledged not to conduct layoffs after the transaction and said it plans to retain the U.S. Steel name and branding, according to the Nippon Steel–U.S. Steel website.

Emel Akan, Reuters, and The Associated Press contributed to this report.