The Ministry of Trade, Industry, and Energy (MOTIE) attended the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Joint Committee on April 26 via videoconferencing at the Government Complex Seoul, the first meeting since its coming into force on February 1 this year.

The Korean government delegation is led by MOTIE’s Director General for FTA Negotiations Lee Kyung-sik and comprises eight delegates from relevant ministries, including the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The meeting was attended by a total of approximately 30 persons, consisting of delegations from 14 member states and the ASEAN Secretariat, which currently serves as RCEP Secretariat.

The Committee discussed management plans on operating a quadripartite system with four divisions, each focusing on product, services investment, sustainable growth, and business environment, respectively. With the RCEP communication channel for member states having officially kicked off, the Committee aims to function as a platform promoting RCEP implementation and utilization. This can stimulate intraregional trade and investments, creating more business opportunities for companies.

Accordingly, MOTIE will work together with relevant ministries and institutions to seek solutions and roll out collaboration projects. MOTIE’s goal is to actively contribute to the intraregional proliferation of free trade by shaping and bringing up key agenda items to the RCEP Joint Committee.

Chief delegate Lee Kyung-sik stated that “As RCEP is a mega FTA that makes up 30 percent of world population, trade volume and economy, it is the optimal framework by which member states can heighten their intraregional cooperation, all the while enlarging markets.”

He added that, “the Korean government will make efforts to contribute to the RCEP implementation, and support domestic companies in overcoming challenges that arise in the process.”