Government Teams Up with US to Release Strategic Reserves... Alliance Cooperation Amid Soaring International Oil Prices

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Kwon Haeyoung] As international oil prices soar, the government will join the joint release of strategic oil reserves proposed by the United States.

The government announced on the 24th that it has decided to participate in the joint release of strategic oil reserves proposed by the United States. This strategic oil release involves major economic powers including the US, South Korea, Japan, and India.

Specific details such as the release volume and timing will be decided through future consultations with allied countries including the US.

The government decided to join the US proposal for the strategic oil release after comprehensively considering the need for international cooperation in response to the recent sharp rise in international oil prices, the importance of the Korea-US alliance, and the participation of major countries. International oil prices, based on Dubai crude, have risen more than 50% compared to the beginning of this year.

The scale, timing, and method of the strategic oil release will be specified later. So far, the government has released strategic oil reserves three times. During the 2011 Libya crisis, about 3.467 million barrels, approximately 4% of the strategic reserves, were released as part of international cooperation.

An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy stated, "Even if strategic oil reserves are released, the actual effect on stabilizing oil prices may be short-term," but added, "Nevertheless, the decision to release strategic reserves led by the US carries significant meaning as a signal to oil-producing countries." He continued, "The release volume will be decided at a level similar to past releases under the International Energy Agency (IEA) international cooperation," and explained, "In this case, domestic strategic reserves will maintain a volume sufficient for more than 100 days according to IEA international standards, so even if strategic reserves are released, it is expected that emergency oil supply and demand will not be affected."

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