Establishment of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy's 'Trade Security Policy Officer' in Preparation for Japan's Export Regulations

Regular Organization of 30 Members in the Trade and Investment Office
Unified Management of Power Material Permits and Prevention of Technology Leakage Tasks

President Moon Jae-in and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe shaking hands at the Shangri-La Hotel Century City in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, China, during the Korea-China-Japan Summit held on December 24 last year. (Photo by Yonhap News)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The government has strengthened the trade security function within its organization in response to trade conflicts with Japan. This move came after Japan imposed export restrictions on key semiconductor and display materials to Korea in July last year, leading to the establishment of a new organization.

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety announced on the 28th that the "Partial Amendment to the Organization of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy and Its Affiliated Agencies," which includes the establishment of a Trade Security Policy Officer dedicated to trade security, was approved at the Cabinet meeting. It will take effect from the 6th of next month.

The Trade Security Policy Officer will be established as a regular organization within the Trade and Investment Office, consisting of about 30 personnel. Newly established subordinate departments include the Trade Security Policy Division, Trade Security Review Division, and Technology Security Division.

The Trade Security Policy Division will serve as the government's trade security control tower, overseeing and formulating trade security policies and responding to domestic and international trade security issues such as Japan's export restrictions. It will also handle tasks such as cracking down on illegal exports, operating and educating on the Authorized Trader System, and supporting strategic material export companies.

The Trade Security Review Division will be responsible for export control tasks including strategic material export permits, situational permits, transit and transshipment permits, and will conduct in-depth reviews if suspicious transactions are detected. It will also handle tasks such as the classification of strategic materials, issuance of import purpose certificates, and management of suspicious traders.

The Technology Security Division will, in addition to managing national core technologies and export approvals, perform tasks such as reviewing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) of core technology-holding companies to strengthen protection against technology leakage, and foreign investment reviews for security-related companies. It will also handle international cooperation tasks such as responding to international agreements related to trade security like the international export control regime and international consultative bodies for protecting sensitive technologies.

Japan's export control measures against Korea influenced the establishment of the dedicated trade security organization. Japan had criticized Korea's export control personnel and organizational weaknesses.

The government considered that Korea's export control personnel and organization were not inferior to those of other countries participating in the international export control regime, but decided to introduce improvements to facilitate smoother dialogue with Japan.

There was also a need to unify the organization and strengthen expertise to respond more efficiently and promptly when trade security issues such as Japan's export restrictions arise.

At the 8th Korea-Japan Export Control Policy Dialogue held on the 10th of last month, Japan reportedly gave a positive evaluation of the recent institutional improvements Korea is pursuing.

Seong Yun-mo, Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, stated, "Trade security functions are becoming increasingly important to quickly respond to the global trade security environment rapidly shifting towards protectionism and advanced technology security, and to protect domestic industries." He added, "By expanding dedicated trade security organizations and personnel, Korea's trade security functions and expertise will be further strengthened."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.