The Korean government has restored Japan to its strategic materials export 'white list' (preferred export screening countries). This comes more than three years after Japan was removed from the white list in response to Japan's unilateral export restrictions in 2019.
On the 24th, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced the revised 'Strategic Materials Export and Import Notice' including Japan's reinstatement to the white list in the official gazette. With this adjustment, Korea's top-tier strategic materials export group 'Category 1' and the group just below it, 'Category 2', which only included Japan, will be merged into a single 'Category A'.
The 'Category A' group includes 29 countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France, and Japan. When domestic companies export strategic materials to these countries, they receive benefits such as shortened permit review periods and simplified application documents.
As a result, the review time for domestic companies applying to export strategic materials to Japan will be reduced from the existing 15 days to 5 days. Additionally, for individual export permits, the required application documents will be reduced from five types to three. By restoring Japan to the white list first, Korea is moving toward resolving the export regulation conflict between the two countries that has lasted over three years.
The strained bilateral relationship took a turn for recovery last month with the Korea-Japan summit. Immediately after the summit, Japan lifted export restrictions on three key semiconductor materials, and Korea withdrew its World Trade Organization (WTO) complaint against Japan's export restrictions.
Meanwhile, the government announced on the same day through the 'Strategic Materials Export and Import Notice' that it will strengthen export controls on strategic materials destined for Russia and Belarus. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy stated that exports of 741 items, including semiconductors, automobiles, construction machinery, steel, and chemical products?which have a high potential for military use?will be generally prohibited to Russia and Belarus.
Thus, in addition to the existing 57 items under export control such as electronics and shipbuilding, the total number of export-controlled items for the two countries has significantly increased to 798. The strengthening of export controls, focusing on items with high potential for military diversion, is part of the international community's coordinated expansion of export controls following the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war.
Recent item adjustments from the four major international export control regimes, including the Wassenaar Arrangement (WA) and the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), have also been reflected. Newly added export control items to Russia include various semiconductor products such as DRAM memory and semiconductor devices used in smartphones, computers, and other electronic products.
Furthermore, exports to Russia and Belarus of quantum computers and related parts, completed vehicles costing over $50,000 (approximately 65 million KRW), machine tools, bearings, heat exchangers, petroleum and gas refining equipment, stainless steel products, and certain chemical products such as toluene are generally prohibited.
The strengthened export controls on Russia and Belarus will take effect from the 28th. Afterward, exports of related items will be generally prohibited, with exceptions granted only through review under conditions such as exports of already contracted goods and exports to wholly owned subsidiaries.
An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy stated, "We plan to strengthen monitoring and enforcement in close cooperation with related ministries to prevent circumvention through third countries and inflows into Russia and Belarus."
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