Trade minister Ahn Duk-geun will lead a joint government task force to formulate response measures to the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act which excludes electric vehicles(EV) assembled outside of North America from tax incentives.

Chairing an emergency meeting with foreign and finance ministry officials on Tuesday, Ahn conveyed plans to activate a task force involving all related ministries to facilitate active discussion on the issue.

He stressed the need to strengthen government-wide cooperation given the gravity of the law's repercussions.

The trade chief also promised to seek bilateral talks with Washington to discuss the EV subsidies. He added that resolving the issue through dialogue is the top priority but that Seoul will also consider dispute resolution mechanisms.

Ahn noted the discriminatory subsidy law applies also to German and Japanese automakers, and pledged to seek coordination with other countries placed in a similar situation.

The minister plans to visit the U.S. next week for talks with U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai and other congressional and administrative officials.