2nd Round of Talks End without Agreement
South Korea and Japan have failed to reach any agreement in their second round of WTO negotiations regarding the latter’s export curbs against the former.
Chung Hae-kwan, director general for trade legal affairs and public relations at the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, represented the South Korean government in the negotiations held at the headquarters of the WTO on Nov. 20. After the meeting, he said that both the South Korean and Japanese governments did not change their stances.
The negotiations started after the South Korean government made an issue of Japan’s export curbs related to three semiconductor and display materials. According to WTO rules, trade disputes must be coped with through bilateral negotiations and a WTO panel is formed when the talks fail. The two governments had their first round of talks last month and the second on Nov. 19 and 20.
With both talks having failed, it is becoming increasingly likely that the South Korean government will request a WTO panel.