The Japanese government announced last week that it will officially remove South Korea from the "white list" on August 28. On the afternoon of the same day, South Korean President Wen Zaiyu also announced that he would kick Japan out of South Korea’s “white list”. The Japanese media pointed out that South Korea’s plan has little impact on Japan because Japan can import semiconductors from Taiwan.
The Japanese government passed the cabinet decision on the morning of the 2nd and will officially remove South Korea from the "white list" on August 28. The so-called "white list" refers to the list of countries that are safe and trade-friendly by the Japanese government. Japanese exporters can enjoy relatively simplified procedures when exporting high-tech products to these countries. On the afternoon of the same day, South Korean President Wen Zemin condemned Japan’s move as a “very reckless decision”. The authorities also indicated that they would take countermeasures and announce that they would kick Japan out of South Korea’s “white list”.
According to a report on the Japanese Yomiuri Shimbun on the 4th, the South Korean government stated that it would remove Japan’s “white list” from South Korea, and Japanese government officials said that “it will not have much impact”. In the import and export of Japan and South Korea, mainly Japan exports raw materials and imports finished products from South Korea. Although Japan currently imports semiconductors from South Korea, Japanese government officials pointed out that “there can be no purchases from Taiwan (semiconductors), and there are almost no substitutes.”
However, when South Korea was kicked out of Japan’s “white list,” when Japanese companies export their products to South Korea, in addition to food and wood, almost all items that may be transferred to military-use machine tools, electronic parts, and carbon fiber are required in principle. Obtained export licenses from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.
On the 2nd, at the press conference held after the cabinet meeting, Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Shiguro Hiroshi said that South Korea’s removal from the white list is only a return to the same environment as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and other Asian countries. This is not an embargo. In principle, as long as the procedures and management are carried out, the export can still be carried out.
In addition, Shi Geng Hongcheng also claimed that South Korea’s removal of the white list will not affect the global supply chain, nor will it have a negative impact on Japanese companies.