Parliamentary panel passes resolution against Japan's export curbs

SEOUL, July 22 (Yonhap) -- The parliamentary foreign affairs committee on Monday adopted a parliamentary resolution calling on Japan to withdraw its curbs on exports to South Korea of key high-tech materials. In a bipartisan effort to tackle Japan's export restrictions, rival parties passed the resolution by consensus at a meeting of the panel. The committee originally planned to adopt it at the Friday meeting, but its move was scuttled as rival parties failed to fix the date for a parliamentary plenary session. But it still remains uncertain whether the National Assembly could put the resolution to a vote though it was passed at the committee. Japan began applying the export curbs on South Korea for three key materials needed for making chips and displays on July 4 in apparent response to Seoul's handling of a wartime forced labor issue. Tokyo is pushing to remove South Korea from a list of trusted buyers, which could negatively affect the supply of other key materials needed for making smartphones, televisions and other industrial materials. President Moon Jae-in and the chiefs of five major political parties agreed last week to launch a bipartisan task force to cope with Japan's export curbs. Earlier in the day, National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang met the floor leaders of the ruling Democratic Party and two opposition parties to narrow gaps over details about plenary sessions but failed to reach a deal. The main opposition Liberty Korea Party and the minor opposition Bareunmirae Party called for voting on a motion proposing President Moon Jae-in dismiss the defense minister over a maritime security failure as a precondition for the passage of an extra budget bill. But the ruling Democratic Party is opposed to the idea. An extraordinary parliamentary session in June ended Friday without passing a 6.7 trillion-won (US$5.7 billion) extra budget bill and other proposals. sooyeon@yna.co.kr (END)