Tokyo, Sep 11: South Korea has moved to the World Trade Organization (WTO) against Japan’s move to impose export tariffs over items much needed by Seoul tech manufacturing entities in what they believe it was an act of retaliatory motion against demand for World War II reparations, S Korean trade minister Yoo Myung-hee stated on Wednesday.
During a media conference, Yoo was cited by Yonhap news agency as saying: “South Korea decided to file a complaint with the WTO on Japan’s export curbs against the three vital materials for chips and displays. [Japan’s] measure is a discriminatory act directly targeting South Korea, and it was politically motivated following our court rulings on the forced labour [of Korean workers during Japan’s colonial rule].”
The trade minister also added Tokyo also breached its duty to run fair, reasonable, and consistent trade rules by regulating trade for the political reasons, according to Sputnik news reports.
Under the WTO laws, if both nations fail to calm down their bilateral and diplomatic spat within 60 days via consultations, the panel will create a council to adjudicate over the spat.
Early in July, Tokyo slapped duties over exports of three high-tech items – hydrogen fluoride, photoresist, and fluorinated polyimides – very essential for South Korean tech firms to manufacture semiconductors and phone displays. Later in August, Japan removed South Korea from its favoured trade list.
The development was the result of a Seoul court’s ruling that Japan’s firms need to pay reparations to ex-Korean workers who were forced into labour during World War II by Tokyo – colonial oppression at the time.