1. Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Sei-young called in Ambassador of Japan to the Republic of Korea (ROK) Yasumasa Nagamine on the morning of August 28 to convey strong regret and protest over the Japanese government’s official removal of the ROK from its whitelist earlier in the day.

2. Vice Minister Cho expressed deep concern in particular over the fact that although the ROK government has continued to call for an immediate withdrawal of the improper measure and for joint efforts toward a diplomatic resolution of the issue, the measure was implemented after all.

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° In addition, the Vice Minister pointed out that the measure is not part of what the Japanese government claims to be a review of export control implementation and but a clear retaliatory trade measure against the ROK Supreme Court’s ruling on the victims of forced labor during Japan’s occupation of Korea as well as a significant challenge that shakes the foundation of the cooperative relations between the ROK and Japan.

3. Vice Minister Cho strongly urged the Japanese government to withdraw all of its improper measures immediately and to sincerely engage in dialogue and consultations to explore a reasonable solution to the issue.

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4. Ambassador Nagamine explained the Japanese government’s position, adding that he would report the ROK government’s position to the headquarters.