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South Korea, the United States, Japan, Australia, India, and other Indo-Pacific countries are forming a ‘Core Mineral Dialogue Body’ to establish a supply network for essential minerals. If there are issues with the supply of key minerals, a high-level consultation body will be activated to respond proactively.
President Yoon Seok-yeol attended the IPEF summit held in San Francisco, USA, on the sidelines of the APEC event on the 16th (local time). The meeting was attended by President Joe Biden of the United States, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida of Japan, and ministers from India, among the leaders of the 13 participating countries.
At the meeting, the leaders of each country agreed to make efforts to △ strengthen the prevention and response capabilities for supply chain disruptions △ promote cooperative investment for the transition to a clean economy △ develop a fair economy through the prevention of corruption and the enhancement of tax administration efficiency △ derive results from mutually beneficial trade agreements, and to form a ‘Core Mineral Dialogue Body’ for the construction of a key mineral supply network. The participating countries of the dialogue body are expected to accurately grasp the status of resource reserves and expand related trade by creating a ‘comprehensive map of mineral reserves’. Choi Sang-mok, the Chief Economic Advisor, said, “If the supply chain agreement takes effect next year, we will take steps such as securing alternative suppliers or exploring transportation routes, and simplifying export procedures through a crisis response network composed of senior officials from 14 countries when a mineral supply crisis occurs. The resilience of the supply chain in the Indo-Pacific region will be greatly enhanced.”
President Biden explained the background of the launch of the Core Mineral Dialogue Body in his IPEF speech that day, saying, “To further strengthen the supply chain and create clean energy jobs.” He also explained, “If this agreement had been in place, we would not have had to lay off so many workers due to shortages of semiconductors and many other resources (that experienced supply shortages).”
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IPEF member countries agreed to share policy information with each other and promote related investments for the transition to a clean economy. The member countries decided to create a ‘Clean Economy Promotion Fund’ for the purpose of developing eco-friendly ports and other infrastructures, with a total of $50 million. South Korea will contribute $8 million to this. It is projected that by 2030, the countries will invest more than $155 billion in public funds in businesses such as clean energy storage. Chief Advisor Choi said, “The opportunities for our companies in infrastructure development and other areas will also increase.”
In addition, the leaders of each country agreed to form an ‘IPEF Network’ to activate personnel exchanges between member countries. They also plan to continue discussions for operation as a multilateral trade body, including energy, security, and technology cooperation. To this end, they decided to hold ministerial meetings annually and summit meetings every other year. The presidential office highly praised the fact that they reached an agreement in three of the four areas, including the supply chain agreement under the IPEF, which was concluded in May, the clean economy agreement, and the fair economy agreement, in a short period of time.
The member countries decided to strengthen compliance measures for the UN Anti-Corruption Convention to prevent bribery and money laundering for the development of a fair economy. Chief Advisor Choi explained that by preventing illegal activities during government procurement and improving the efficiency of tax administration, the stability and transparency of the business environment within the region will also increase.
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