| Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) Chairman Huh Chang-soo, front row sixth from left, and Japan Business Federation Chairman Masakazu Tokura, front row fifth from left, applaud with participants at the Korea-Japan Business Council at the FKI Conference Center in Seoul, Monday. Newsis |
Japan Business Federation asked to support Korea's plan to join CPTPP
By Park Jae-hyuk
Members of the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) and the Japan Business Federation called on each of their governments to restore a mutual visa waiver program that has been suspended since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Amid signs of a recovery in Korea's economic ties with Japan under the leadership of President Yoon Suk-yeol, both business federations also agreed during a meeting held on Monday in Seoul on the need to abolish trade regulations and the resumption of currency swaps. It was the first time in three years that business representatives from both sides met face to face.
The two business federations have held annual meetings in Korea and Japan in rotation over the past four decades to promote mutual understanding between businesspeople of the two neighboring countries, but the spread of the coronavirus caused a suspension of the event.
"We hope that a summit between our leaders will be held as soon as possible so that pending issues can be resolved at once," said Huh Chang-soo, chairman of the FKI, which hosted the event.
He asked the Japanese business leaders to support the Korean government's efforts to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP).
Japan has opposed Korea joining the major free trade agreement involving 11 countries, citing the Korean government's ban on the import of seafood from areas near Fukushima, where a nuclear power plant meltdown occurred in 2011.
The two organizations also discussed mutual cooperation for the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF), while proposing a trilateral business summit between Korea, Japan and the U.S. to boost their ties.
The FKI chairman was keen to mention the Joint Declaration of 1998: A New Korea-Japan Partnership towards the 21st Century, which was made by then President Kim Dae-jung and his Japanese counterpart, Prime Minister Keizo Obuchi.
He asked the governments of both countries to learn from the declaration so that they can restore their diplomatic relations, which have weakened since the Japanese government restricted the export of key materials to Korea in retaliation against the Korean Supreme Court's ruling that ordered a Japanese firm to provide compensation for wartime forced labor.
Masakazu Tokura, chief of the Japanese association, responded by saying that his country's businesspeople also want the leaders of both countries to resume dialogue as soon as possible.
At the end of the event, the two business lobby groups agreed to hold the next meeting in Japan next year.
According to the FKI, Monday's event was attended by around 20 top executives from Korea, including Lotte Group Chairman Shin Dong-bin, Hyosung Group Chairman Cho Hyun-joon, KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo and Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung.
Executives from Samsung, SK, Hyundai Motor and LG also participated in the event, despite the four largest Korean conglomerates' withdrawal from the FKI due to the federation's involvement in a corruption scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye.
| President Yoon Suk-yeol, right, speaks during a meeting with delegations from Japan Business Federation at the presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul, Monday. Joint Press Corps |
In the afternoon, the Japanese business leaders participated in a closed-door meeting with Yoon at the presidential office.
Their visit to the Korean president came just days after he expressed his intention to be more active in mending ties with Japan. Yoon made the comments during his attendance at the 2022 North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Summit in Spain last week.
The presidential office said Yoon and the Japanese delegation discussed ways to strengthen economic networks between the two countries.