South Korea says talks with Japan enhanced mutual understanding

Reuters - South Korea said its talks with Japan on Monday (December 16) enhanced the mutual understanding of their management of export control systems, adding that the two sides will hold another round of dialogue in Seoul in the near future. The two U.S. allies agreed to continue a dialogue to "contribute to resolving problems," Lee Ho-hyeon, South Korea's director general for international trade policy, told a news briefing. Senior Japanese and South Korean trade officials met on Monday for the first time since Japan imposed controls on exports to its neighbour of high-technology materials in July, amid a row over wartime forced laborers.