SEOUL – Officials from South Korea, the United States and Japan have held their first financial safety dialogue, South Korea’s presidential workplace mentioned Tuesday, amid efforts to strengthen the resilience of provide chains and develop expertise.
Though Japan and South Korea are at time uneasy neighbors, the three international locations are eager to increase cooperation in varied fields within the face of elevated world tensions, a extra assertive China and an unpredictable North Korea.
‘This dialogue is significant in increasing bilateral financial safety cooperation with the United States to the trilateral degree,’ the workplace of South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol mentioned in a press release.
‘It is anticipated to strengthen the three international locations’ main provide chain resilience and disaster response capabilities and play a task in fostering cooperation to advertise and shield key and rising applied sciences.’
Yoon, U.S. President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida agreed to launch the talks – held in Hawaii on Monday – throughout a summit in November.
The United States has accused China and Russia of weaponizing provide chains to disrupt the worldwide economic system and stoke geopolitical pressure.
At the talks in Hawaii, the officers mentioned exchanges in areas together with quantum, bio and area applied sciences, and methods to step up cooperation to stabilize provide chains for semiconductors, batteries and core minerals, Yoon’s workplace mentioned.
They additionally mentioned cooperation to guard expertise and knowledge and vulnerabilities arising from financial interdependence, it added.