hankyoreh

Woo Tae-hee (center)

As China intensifies its economic retaliation over the THAAD deployment, the South Korean government is considering resorting to international law by filing complaints with the World Trade Organization (WTO). For now, though, the government intends to focus its efforts on resolving the situation through bilateral channels.

“Deliberations are continuing between the trade ministries of the two countries in regard to the difficulties that South Korean companies are facing because of the retaliatory measures over THAAD. While we’re reviewing the option of filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization in several industries, there are many things that must be considered before filing such a complaint, including deliberations with China, and the needs of South Korean companies. We have not yet made a final decision about whether to file a complaint,” the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy announced on Mar. 7 in a press conference following the ninth meeting of a task force reviewing trade between South Korea and China.

Held at the Plaza Hotel in Seoul, the meeting was attended by representatives from business associations in 13 industries (including tourism, distribution, cosmetics, foodstuffs, steel, automobiles and petrochemicals) and by officials from the Ministry of Trade and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who discussed the extent of the damage and ways of addressing it.

“An agreement was reached to proactively consider the option of filing a complaint with the World Trade Organization against China’s retaliatory trade measures,” said Lee Hyeon-jae, chair of the policy committee for the Liberty Korea Party (formerly the Saenuri Party), after a meeting between government and party officials on the same day.

The government explained that certain industries are reviewing the procedure for filing complaints with international trade organizations in regard to the commercial regulations that China imposed on specific products following the decision to deploy THAAD last year. But the government regards international legal action as a last resort to be used if bilateral deliberations break down. Before filing a complaint, the government explained, it would have to determine whether the various actions that China has taken, such as the ban on travel to South Korea, constitute official trade measures by the Chinese government, and if so, to prove that that is the case. China’s current excuse is that these actions are taking place unofficially and are unrelated to the government. The South Korean government is reportedly taking steps to compile documentation to determine whether there has been a violation of WTO rules or the free trade agreement - or in other words, whether these actions are actually government measures.

Furthermore, a complaint cannot be filed unless the South Korean companies that have suffered losses actually request it, and a considerable number of companies are reportedly not inclined to go that far out of a fear of provoking China. “If we continue to raise this issue through bilateral channels, such as the China-South Korea FTA implementation committee and high-level talks, we believe there is a possibility that the Chinese may come around, though it may take some time,” the Ministry of Trade explained.

“This issue is different from the dispute between South Korea and China over tariffs on garlic imports in 2000. This issue is about security, namely the THAAD deployment. The WTO and the China-South Korea FTA include security exceptions that recognize measures that are deemed necessary to protect essential national security interests,” said Song Gi-ho, an expert on commerce, during a phone call with the Hankyoreh.

“The THAAD issue cannot be resolved using the WTO framework. It has to be dealt with through diplomatic and security channels,” he said.

On Mar. 7, Tencent, China’s largest IT company, suddenly canceled an event called “Tencent Brand Solutions” that was scheduled to take place at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul on Mar. 8, prompting speculation about a possible connection to THAAD. The event was of considerable interest to South Korean companies, since Tencent was planning to introduce ways to take advantage of the Wechat and Weibo social networks for marketing purposes and since Benny Ho, a senior director at the company, was supposed to appear. Tencent explained that it had delayed the event because of Benny Ho’s “personal reasons.”

By Ko Na-mu and Kim Jae-seob, staff reporters

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