The secretariat of a multilateral export control regime has said it has "no mechanism" to intervene in the ongoing trade row between South Korea and Japan.
 
Rep. Yoon Sang-hyun of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party, who chairs the National Assembly's foreign affairs committee, said in a press release on Sunday that the secretariat of the Wassenaar Arrangement issued the position in a reply to a letter to the organization.

The secretariat responded that it has no mechanism to intervene in bilateral issues that may arise between member states and that all it may provide is an opportunity to share information under the terms of the accord.

The secretariat added that it was making the reply in consultation with the organization's chief Catherine Koika and secretariat head Philip Griffiths, and affirmed its support of the 42 member states participating in the efficient functions of the arrangement.

The Wassenaar Arrangement was formally established in 1996 as a voluntary multilateral regime aimed at curbing the illicit transfer of conventional weapons and sensitive dual-use goods and technologies. 

Both South Korea and Japan are signatories to the accord.