Trade minister Ahn Duk-geun has asked for continued cooperation from Washington to address Seoul’s concerns over the U.S.’ Inflation Reduction Act(IRA) and subsidies under the CHIPS Act. 

The minister, who said relations between the two countries had developed into a high-tech industry and technology alliance, made the request in a phone call with U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo on Tuesday. 

During the phone call, Ahn said that his ministry and the U.S. Commerce Department will continue to play a key role to strengthen cooperative relations between the two nations. 

The minister then asked for Washington’s cooperation to address Seoul’s concerns on major pending trade issues related to the U.S. CHIPS Act and IRA regulations, which require electric vehicles(EV) and EV component makers to eliminate critical mineral and material sources from China, designated as a Foreign Entity of Concern(FEOC), to qualify for a tax credit. 

The ministry said that the two sides agreed on the need to swiftly hold a joint meeting of the trade ministers of South Korea, the U.S. and Japan as agreed in the trilateral summit at Camp David last August.