hankyoreh

The Blue House

A senior official at the Blue House said the South Korean government is not reviewing export restrictions on dynamic random-access memory (DRAM) semiconductors to Japan. The official said there was “room for confusion” in regards to comments made by Kim Hyun-chong, the second deputy chief of the Blue House National Security Office, who said during a recent radio program that DRAM export restrictions to Japan were being considered by the Blue House.

“There are many reports suggesting that restricting DRAM supplies is one of the ways the South Korean government can respond against Japan. That’s just not true,” the official said, in response to a Hankyoreh reporter’s questions during an interview at the Blue House’s Chunchugwan (Spring and Autumn Pavilion). The official added, “I think I saw a report in the JoongAng Ilbo that the South Korean government is reviewing export restrictions on DRAM supplies. The report cited a ruling party representative’s remark that ‘The government is reviewing the implementation of restrictions on DRAM exports to Japan.’ That, however, is just not true.”

The official also stated that South Korea has a “high market share in DRAM production. If the supply of (semiconductor) materials face difficulties that will cause issues in semiconductor production and in the supply chain. Such a disruption could even impact [the supply chains in] other countries.” The official concluded by saying that “It’s a wrong interpretation [of the South Korean government’s plans] to say that one of our options against Japan is to deny them DRAM supplies.”

Appearing on the Traffic Broadcasting System (TBS) program “Kim O-Joon’s News Factory,” Kim said, “There are also many areas in which Japan depends upon us. South Korea has a 72.4% market share of DRAM, for example. A two-month halt in the supply of DRAM would disrupt the global production of 230 million smartphones. So, we have some cards in our hand, too.”

By Lee Wan, staff reporter

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