Japan to Tighten Export Control Over Items Shipped to South Korea - Reports

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Japan plans to release this week an extended list of goods subjected to stricter regulations when exported to South Korea, the Yonhap news agency reported on Tuesday.

In early July, Japan already limited exports of three chemical components — fluorinated polyimides, photoresist and hydrogen fluoride — that are vital to South Korean high-tech industries.

According to the Yonhap news agency, Tokyo plans to add approximately 1,100 items classified as strategic materials to the list. The specifics are expected to be presented on Wednesday.

South Korea deputy trade minister Kim Seung-ho (C) attends the General Council meeting where the worsening trade and diplomatic dispute between South Korea and Japan will be raised at the World Trade Organization (WTO) in Geneva, Switzerland, July 24, 2019.

© REUTERS / DENIS BALIBOUSE

Relations between Japan and South Korea dampened after the latter's top court ruled that a number of Japanese companies could be sued for their use of forced labour during the Japanese colonization of the Korean Peninsula between 1910-1945. Japan has protested the decision, claiming that the 1965 agreement between the two countries had resolved the issue of damages once and for all.

On 2 August, Tokyo made the decision to stop treating Seoul as a trusted trade partner.