 |
|
Kim Sang-jo, the Blue House’s chief of staff for policy, at a high-level meeting with the Democratic Party at the National Assembly on July 3. (Yonhap News)
|
Chief of staff for policy addresses reporters on Tokyo’s retaliation measures
On July 3, Kim Sang-jo, the Blue House’s chief of staff for policy, said that Japan’s export controls targeted critical parts and materials but asserted that those controls had been oredicted and that the government is dealing with them effectively. South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha also stated that Seoul was preparing to file a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO). During a meeting with journalists at a restaurant in Seoul’s Jongno District, Kim said that the government hadn’t been “sitting on its hands” about Japan’s export controls. “There are about 70 processes involved in manufacturing organic light-emitting diodes (OLED) and 500 processes for memory semiconductors. We examined each of these processes and identified the parts and materials that can only be imported from Japan, which gave us a long list,” Kim said. “The first three items on this list turned out to be the very items that Japan announced it would restrict,” Kim said, suggesting that Japan is deliberately trying to cause damage to the South Korean semiconductor industry. But Kim underlined that the government had taken preparations while drawing up this list and that it would “respond while adequately managing for risk.” Kim Sang-jo has reportedly discussed potential countermeasures during meetings with executives at Samsung Electronics, including Vice Chairman Kim Ki-nam. Kim Sang-jo also appeared at a meeting of senior members of the ruling party, government, and Blue House that was held at the National Assembly on Wednesday and promised to “personally be in contact with the country’s five largest groups and to collaborate with them.” By Seong Yeon-cheol, staff reporter Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]
