S. Korean FM urges Japan to recall decision of removing Seoul from trade 'whitelist'

South Korean Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha said on Friday that South Korea regrets on Japan's removal of South Korea from its whitelist of trusted trading partners and urged Japan to recall the decision.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, center, gestures to his Japanese counterpart Taro Kono, right, and South Korean counterpart Kang Kyung-wha after a trilateral meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN and dialogue partners foreign ministers' meeting in Bangkok, Thailand, Friday, Aug. 2, 2019. [Photo: Jonathan Ernst/Pool Photo via AP]

Kang made the remarks after a trilateral meeting with Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono and U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on the sidelines of the ASEAN (the Association of the Southeast Asian Nations) foreign ministers' meeting and other related meetings in Bangkok.

"Japan should take full responsibility for the decision," Kang said in a statement, "South Korea urges Japan to recall its decision and make efforts to address the issue through dialogue."

South Korea has filed a strong protest against it, Kang said.

The South Korean top diplomat also expressed concerns about the current South Korea-Japan ties in the statement.

Despite obstacles, South Korea is willing to address this dispute with Japan through dialogue, Kang said.

Japan on Friday decided to remove South Korea from a list of nations entitled to simplified export control procedures.

The removal of South Korea from the list will take effect on Aug. 28 following the necessary completion of domestic procedures in Japan.

Japan had already tightened regulations last month on its exports to South Korea of three materials vital to make memory chips and display panels, which are mainstays of the South Korean economy.

Japan has a total of 27 countries on its whitelist, including the United States, Britain, Germany, Australia, New Zealand and Argentina, and whitelisted countries can, through simplified procedures, receive products exported from Japan that could be potentially be diverted for military use.

South Korea has been on the list of nations entitled to simplified export control procedures since 2004, which cover a wide range of items, except for food, timber and other goods.

In order to export the products to countries not on the white list, the countries need to obtain approval from Japan's trade ministry.

The South Korean government has urged Japan not to proceed with its removal from the white list, which it estimates could have a negative bearing on more than 1,000 items in key industries spanning the auto and petrochemical sectors.