Government Holds Consultations on Korea-Japan Export Controls... Temporary Suspension of WTO Dispute

The government has decided to hold bilateral consultations to restore the export control situation between South Korea and Japan to the state before July 2019. During the export control consultations, the World Trade Organization (WTO) dispute resolution procedures will be suspended.

On the 6th, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held a briefing titled 'Announcement on the Current Issues of Korea-Japan Export Controls' and stated, "We have agreed to proceed with bilateral consultations promptly."

Kang Gam-chan, Director of Trade Security Policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, is conducting a Q&A session with the press corps after briefing them on the current issues of Korea-Japan export regulations at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy press room in the Government Sejong Complex on the 6th.

While the relevant consultations are underway, the Korean government will suspend the WTO dispute resolution procedures, and the Japanese government plans to hold a Korea-Japan export control policy dialogue soon for this purpose.

Kang Gam-chan, Director of Trade Security Policy at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, said, "The suspension of the WTO dispute procedures is not a withdrawal but a temporary pause, and if the dialogue does not resolve the issue amicably, the procedures can be resumed." He added, "Since the meeting date will be decided through consultations between the two countries, it is difficult to predict in advance."

Previously, when South Korea's Supreme Court issued a final ruling in October 2018 ordering Japanese defendant companies to compensate the victims, Japan reacted by designating three items essential for semiconductor and organic light-emitting diode (OLED) manufacturing?photoresist (PR), high-purity hydrogen fluoride, and fluorinated polyimide (FPI)?as individually export-licensed items in July 2019, thereby imposing export controls. In response, South Korea filed a complaint with the WTO against Japan's export control measures in September 2019.

Director Kang said on the day, "The WTO complaint situation was in the process of panel formation," and added, "Panel formation is a very important and discretionary aspect related to the dispute, so both countries were discussing it carefully."