U.S. President Donald Trump has signed a set of safeguard measures against imported large residential washing machines and solar cells, including those from South Korea.

During the signing at the White House on Tuesday, Trump said that the measures will help create jobs in the U.S. and also provide a strong incentive for Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics to follow through on their recent promises to build washing machine manufacturing plants in the U.S.

He added that the U.S. is renegotiating its free trade agreement with South Korea, which he claims has been a disaster for his country as it resulted in the loss of 200-thousand jobs. 

Regarding strong protests from South Korea and China over the measures, Trump said that it will not lead to a trade war.

U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer announced safeguard measures on imports of large residential washing machines and solar cells the previous day, saying that the U.S. International Trade Commission found that American producers had been seriously affected by imported goods.