South Korea, Japan seek reset on decades of historical disputes

South Korea said on Monday it plans to drop Japan from its "white list" of countries with fast-track trade status from September, a tit-for-tat move that deepens a diplomatic and trade rift between the two countries.

The tighter trade regulations, including potential lengthy permit application processes, will apply to South Korean exports to Japan.

Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo said that Japan would be put in a newly-created trade category of countries that have not run their export control systems in line with "international export control principles".

Park Tae-sung, a senior South Korean trade ministry official, added that Japan had been designated the first country in the new group because of inappropriate trade practices, but did not provide details.

Watch: Japan drops South Korea from trade list

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Relations between the two countries have soured since a ruling by South Korea's Supreme Court last year that Japanese companies should compensate South Koreans who were conscripted as forced labourers during World War Two.

The Japanese government did not immediately issue a public response to Monday’s announcement, but a senior foreign ministry official told broadcaster NHK that a response would come after more analysis of the details of South Korea’s decision.

Another foreign ministry official said that Tokyo was not expecting an immediate impact, NHK reported.

Japan announced earlier this month that it was removing South Korea from its own "white list" of countries that have enjoyed minimum trade restrictions, citing an erosion of trust.

That followed Japan's imposition in July of tighter curbs on exports to South Korea of materials used to make smartphone chips, South Korea's top export item. Tokyo last week granted the first shipment of high-tech materials to South Korea since those restrictions were enforced.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Japan's economic retaliation is not only intrinsically unfair, but unjust because it stems from Japan's colonial-era abuses.

Still, South Koreans should not react emotionally and should maintain constructive ties with the Japanese people, Moon said at a meeting of senior aides on Monday.

"We should take deep breaths to consider a fundamental countermeasure in a vehement yet calm manner," he said.

In a bid to cut its reliance on Japanese imports, South Korea last week announced plans to invest about 7.8 trillion won ($6.48 billion) in research and development for local materials, parts and equipment over seven years.

"The government will pursue an elaborate and detailed strategy to more substantively develop our economy by taking Japan's economic retaliation as a chance to turn good out of evil," Moon said.

Sung said he was ready to talk with Japanese officials any time Tokyo requests a meeting. 
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South Korea said on Monday it plans to drop Japan from its "white list" of countries with fast-track trade status from September, a tit-for-tat move that deepens a diplomatic and trade rift between the two countries.

South Korea said on Monday it plans to drop Japan from its "white list" of countries with fast-track trade status from September, a tit-for-tat move that deepens a diplomatic and trade rift between the two countries. The tighter trade regulations, including potential lengthy permit application processes, will apply to South Korean exports to Japan. Industry Minister Sung Yun-mo said that Japan would be put in a newly-created trade category of countries that have not run their export control systems in line with "international export control principles". Park Tae-sung, a senior South Korean trade ministry official, added that Japan had been designated the first country in the new group because of inappropriate trade practices, but did not provide details. Watch: Japan drops South Korea from trade list × Relations between the two countries have soured since a ruling by South Korea's Supreme Court last year that Japanese companies should compensate South Koreans who were conscripted as forced labourers during World War Two. The Japanese government did not immediately issue a public response to Monday’s announcement, but a senior foreign ministry official told broadcaster NHK that a response would come after more analysis of the details of South Korea’s decision. Another foreign ministry official said that Tokyo was not expecting an immediate impact, NHK reported. Japan announced earlier this month that it was removing South Korea from its own "white list" of countries that have enjoyed minimum trade restrictions, citing an erosion of trust. That followed Japan's imposition in July of tighter curbs on exports to South Korea of materials used to make smartphone chips, South Korea's top export item. Tokyo last week granted the first shipment of high-tech materials to South Korea since those restrictions were enforced. South Korean President Moon Jae-in said Japan's economic retaliation is not only intrinsically unfair, but unjust because it stems from Japan's colonial-era abuses. Still, South Koreans should not react emotionally and should maintain constructive ties with the Japanese people, Moon said at a meeting of senior aides on Monday. "We should take deep breaths to consider a fundamental countermeasure in a vehement yet calm manner," he said. In a bid to cut its reliance on Japanese imports, South Korea last week announced plans to invest about 7.8 trillion won ($6.48 billion) in research and development for local materials, parts and equipment over seven years. "The government will pursue an elaborate and detailed strategy to more substantively develop our economy by taking Japan's economic retaliation as a chance to turn good out of evil," Moon said. Sung said he was ready to talk with Japanese officials any time Tokyo requests a meeting.

South Korea to drop Japan from its fast-track trade 'white list'

South Korea is exploring all options in a <a href="https://www.wionews.com/business-economy/south-korea-launches-lets-learn-japans-restrictions-website-for-puzzled-businesses-240137">bitter trade row with Japan</a>, including scrapping an intelligence-sharing pact, but wants a cooling-off period with Tokyo, a senior South Korean official said on Saturday.

The trade row escalated on Friday when Japan removed South Korea from a favoured trading nations list, prompting Seoul to warn it would not be defeated again by its neighbour, laying bare decades-old wartime animosity.

South Korea may consider revoking a military information-sharing pact as a countermeasure, a view raised during a trilateral foreign ministers' meeting with the United States and Japan on Friday in Bangkok, said the South Korean official.

The accord, the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), facilitates three-way intelligence gathering with Washington and is crucial for both South Korea and Japan in dealing with North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. The deal is automatically renewed annually on Aug. 24.

"GSOMIA plays a quite significant part in three-way security cooperation," said the official told reporters on the sidelines of a regional security forum in Bangkok.

"We've made clear that for our part, we are in a situation to put all options on the table."

The trade dispute has intensified since Japan imposed curbs last month on exports to South Korea of three high-tech materials needed to make memory chips and display panels, threatening the global supply chain.

The move was seen as a response to a South Korean court ruling last year that ordered Japanese firms to compensate some of their wartime forced labourers, though Tokyo cited unspecified security reasons.

Japan says the issue of forced labour was settled by a 1965 treaty that normalised ties between the two countries.

The South Korean official said a "cooling-off period" with Japan was necessary to craft a solution.

"The export curbs confined room for diplomacy for both sides, and the situation is now even more difficult due to another retaliatory measure," said the official, referring to Japan's actions on Friday.

"It's difficult to think about a long-term strategy under such a heightened, agitated situation."

South Korea is exploring all options in a bitter trade row with Japan, including scrapping an intelligence-sharing pact, but wants a cooling-off period with Tokyo, a senior South Korean official said on Saturday.

South Korea is exploring all options in a bitter trade row with Japan, including scrapping an intelligence-sharing pact, but wants a cooling-off period with Tokyo, a senior South Korean official said on Saturday. The trade row escalated on Friday when Japan removed South Korea from a favoured trading nations list, prompting Seoul to warn it would not be defeated again by its neighbour, laying bare decades-old wartime animosity. South Korea may consider revoking a military information-sharing pact as a countermeasure, a view raised during a trilateral foreign ministers' meeting with the United States and Japan on Friday in Bangkok, said the South Korean official. The accord, the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), facilitates three-way intelligence gathering with Washington and is crucial for both South Korea and Japan in dealing with North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. The deal is automatically renewed annually on Aug. 24. "GSOMIA plays a quite significant part in three-way security cooperation," said the official told reporters on the sidelines of a regional security forum in Bangkok. "We've made clear that for our part, we are in a situation to put all options on the table." The trade dispute has intensified since Japan imposed curbs last month on exports to South Korea of three high-tech materials needed to make memory chips and display panels, threatening the global supply chain. The move was seen as a response to a South Korean court ruling last year that ordered Japanese firms to compensate some of their wartime forced labourers, though Tokyo cited unspecified security reasons. Japan says the issue of forced labour was settled by a 1965 treaty that normalised ties between the two countries. The South Korean official said a "cooling-off period" with Japan was necessary to craft a solution. "The export curbs confined room for diplomacy for both sides, and the situation is now even more difficult due to another retaliatory measure," said the official, referring to Japan's actions on Friday. "It's difficult to think about a long-term strategy under such a heightened, agitated situation."

South Korea warns Japan of security pact risk, calls for 'cooling-off' in trade row