The business communities of Korea, the United States and Japan gathered together in Washington, D.C., to launch and formalize a trilateral business dialogue to carry forward the spirit of Camp David.

  On Wednesday afternoon (Washington time), June 26, the Federation of Korean Industries (FKI) hosted the inaugural Korea-U.S.-Japan Business Dialogue, the first private consultation between Korea, the U.S. and Japan, in collaboration with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and Keidanren (Japan Business Federation) at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington, D.C. At the meeting, which was held in conjunction with the inaugural Korea-U.S.-Japan Industry Ministers' Meeting in Washington on the same day, the three representative economic organizations from the three countries announced the launch of the private sector business dialogue to maximize the results of economic cooperation that has been increasing since the Camp David Korea-U.S.-Japan Trilateral Summit and agreed to hold future meetings on a regular basis.

  In his congratulatory remarks, Korean Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy Dukgeun Ahn, who attended the meeting to celebrate the launch of the trilateral business dialogue, said, "Just before today's meeting, I held the first trilateral industrial ministerial meeting with Minister Saito and Secretary Raimondo, and confirmed our willingness to cooperate on developing trilateral industrial cooperation and joint responses to global risks." "The Korean government will do its utmost to support the future vision of industrial cooperation to be discussed by the companies of the three countries today to become a reality," he said. Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Ken Saito and U.S. Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves also delivered congratulatory remarks to encourage business leaders from the three countries.

Signed MOU to hold trilateral business community meetings on a regular meeting as private-sector support for last year's Korea-U.S.-Japan Summit

  During the meeting, an MOU on cooperation between the FKI, the U.S. Chamber, and Keidanren was signed in the presence of government officials from the three countries. The MOU includes a commitment to promote trilateral cooperation in the areas of economic security and technology, building on the agreement reached at the Camp David Summit, and to strive to expand long-term economic cooperation. To this end, the three countries pledged to hold the Korea-U.S.-Japan Business Dialogue on a regular basis (at least once a year). In particular, it was agreed that the Korea-U.S.-Japan Business Dialogue will be held in conjunction with meetings of the three heads of state or governments. In addition, the three business groups will continue to exchange information and make policy recommendations to increase trade and investment in areas such as IT innovation, digital economy and manufacturing, energy, and infrastructure. The agreement also includes a provision to speak with a common voice on common economic issues in the international arena.

  "I believe that as the trilateral cooperation in the industrial and economic sectors discussed at the trilateral summit has now been institutionalized in writing, this will lead to more stable economic cooperation among the three countries," said Chang-beom Kim, vice chairman of the FKI. "To implement the MOU, we will continue to work with the FKI and Keidanren to hold biannual working group meetings and annual general meetings," said Charles Freeman, senior vice president of the U.S. Chamber. "This will allow the business community to have a say in the policy-making process of the three governments." Ichiro Hara, managing director of Keidanren, added, "The importance of cooperation among the three countries has increased amidst the unstable global environment, and I expect our cooperation to be further strengthened through the newly established tripartite framework."

Discussed ways to collaborate, including supply chains/advanced tech, energy/minerals and policy recommendations from the private sector’s perspective

  In the discussion session that followed, business leaders from the three countries discussed ways to strengthen cooperation in three areas, trade and high-tech industries, energy and conflict minerals and domestic challenges and policy recommendations, under the theme of the "Current State of Korea-U.S.-Japan Cooperation and Pathway for Economic Resilience & Growth.”

  The three countries' business leaders had a lively discussion on trilateral cooperation in the high-tech sector, where securing stable supply chains is directly related to competitiveness, as well as for the exploration and development of key minerals, which are in high demand as advanced technology develops further, and for the transition to clean energy, as well as jointly identifying policy issues and recommendations for such cooperation.

  The meeting was attended by eight companies from Korea, including Samsung Electronics, SK, Hyundai Motor Company, Hanwha, POSCO, Hyosung and LS; 10 companies from the United States, including Intel, Micron Technology, Qualcomm and Amazon; and eight companies from Japan, including Toyota, Sony, Hitachi and Sumitomo.

[Attached] Korea-U.S.-Japan Business Dialogue Overview