Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy Holds Trade Promotion Committee Meeting... Discusses Plans for 3rd IPEF Negotiations

Andeokgeun Director General "Focusing Trade Capabilities Across All Ministries"
APEC Meeting Also Discusses Overseas Greenhouse Gas Reduction

The government reviewed South Korea's positions and specific response directions in various sectors such as trade, supply chains, clean economy, and fair economy ahead of the 3rd official negotiations of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) scheduled for next week.

On the 1st, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy held the 33rd Trade Promotion Committee meeting chaired by Andeokgeun, the head of the Trade Negotiation Headquarters, and discussed ▲ the plan for advancing the 3rd IPEF negotiations ▲ the results of the 9th official Korea-Ecuador SECA negotiations and future plans ▲ the preparation status and response directions for the APEC Trade Ministers' Meeting ▲ the current status and challenges of greenhouse gas reduction abroad in the industrial energy sector.

Head Andeokgeun stated, "In the current situation where the formation of trade order is accelerating to respond to new trade agendas such as supply chain and advanced technology competition, and digital green transition centered on the Indo-Pacific region, which is the main axis of recent global economic growth," and added that all ministries will focus their trade capabilities to achieve results in the related negotiations.

IPEF is a multinational economic cooperation body launched in May last year, led by the United States, with major countries in the Indo-Pacific region participating. The 3rd official negotiations will be held in Singapore from the 8th to the 15th. An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "We will actively seek mutually beneficial cooperation measures among participating countries so that IPEF can establish itself as a hub for economic cooperation in the Indo-Pacific region and effectively respond to supply chain stabilization, diversification, and transition to clean energy."

The Trade Promotion Committee shared the results of the 9th official negotiations of the Korea-Ecuador Strategic Economic Cooperation Agreement (SECA) held in early April with related ministries and discussed future negotiation plans. Ecuador is a country rich in resources in Latin America, a key emerging market in the Indo-Pacific region. Accordingly, South Korea has been negotiating a free trade agreement with Ecuador since 2015. In the 9th negotiations, Korea and Ecuador achieved significant narrowing of differences regarding market opening for items of interest and plan to promptly conclude the remaining negotiations.

Ahead of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Trade Ministers' Meeting to be held in Detroit, USA, from the 25th to 26th, the preparation status and plans were reviewed with related ministries. The United States, the chair country of APEC this year, has presented strengthening the role of the multilateral trading system and promoting sustainable and inclusive trade as key agendas related to new trade issues such as supply chains, digital, and carbon neutrality. The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to introduce South Korea's policies related to new trade issues and its efforts toward WTO reform at this meeting and to present directions for related international cooperation.

As the final agenda, the Trade Promotion Committee discussed the current status and challenges of greenhouse gas reduction abroad in the industrial and energy sectors. Greenhouse gas reduction abroad refers to reflecting overseas greenhouse gas reduction achievements in South Korea's greenhouse gas reduction. An official from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said, "To achieve the overseas reduction targets, we will discover promising projects and expand pilot projects," adding, "We will also strengthen international cooperation for smooth project implementation by promoting bilateral memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with partner countries and expanding the establishment of support centers."

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