S. Korean vice FM calls in Japanese ambassador to lodge protest over export restrictions

SEOUL, July 1 (Yonhap) -- Vice Foreign Minister Cho Sei-young called in Japan's top envoy in Seoul on Monday to lodge a protest over Tokyo's decision to toughen restrictions on high-tech exports to South Korea. Japan's industry ministry said earlier that it will begin enforcing stronger export controls on Thursday on a set of materials used to produce semiconductors and smartphones in an apparent response to last year's Korean court rulings against Japanese firms over wartime forced labor. During the meeting with Amb. Yasumasa Nakamine, Cho expressed "serious concerns and regrets" over the measure and urged Tokyo to retract it. "Vice Foreign Minister Cho expressed serious concerns and regrets as the Japanese government's measure could have a negative impact on the two countries' relationship as well as our related industries," the ministry said in a press release. Cho also stressed that the measure runs counter to the declaration of last week's Group of 20 summit in Japan that highlights the participating leaders' commitment to realize a "free, fair, non-discriminatory, transparent, predictable and stable trade and investment environment." "While more closely scrutinizing the details of the measure and its possible ramifications on our economy, the government plans to craft responses to it in cooperation with our companies," the ministry said. Tokyo has protested the court decisions to order Japanese firms to compensate South Korean victims of forced labor. It insists that all reparation issues were settled under a 1965 state-to-state accord that normalized bilateral relations after Japan's 1910-45 colonization of the peninsula. Seoul recently proposed forming a joint fund with contributions from South Korean and Japanese firms to compensate the victims. But Tokyo rejected the proposal. Japan's apparent retaliatory measure raised concerns that the diplomatic tussle between the neighbors is escalating into the economic domain despite Seoul's call to work together to foster a future-oriented partnership. sshluck@yna.co.kr (END)