전문가들 '백색국가 제외로 당장은 日에 큰 타격 없을 것...정부, 상황 봐가며 단계적 대응수위 높일 듯'

Now much attention is being focused on how much Japan's removal from Korea's whitelist of trading partners will affect Japan.
Experts say... the measures will have a limited impact on Japan for now,... but warn... Seoul may step up its measures if negotiations with Tokyo don't work.
Yoon Jung-min has details.
Regarding the South Korean government's decision on Monday to remove Japan from its whitelist of trusted trading partners,... some experts see it as a rather "less aggressive" response to Japan's latest export curbs.
"Originally, the South Korean government planned to categorize Japan in group C,... but instead it has divided group A into two and put Japan in group A2. This means the government would not stir up Japan's emotions."
Some experts say the decision is one of the least strong measures,... leaving some room for further negotiation. The government also opened a dialogue channel with Tokyo on Monday. If talks don't work out well, they say, Seoul may move on to the next step.
"Japan will be comparatively less affected by the decision because South Korea does not ship that many strategic goods to Japan. However, terminating GSOMIA, or the intelligence sharing agreement with Japan is a different thing. It will impact Japan. So, ending GSOMIA can be the next step."
When asked if Seoul and Tokyo can improve their ties after South Korea's National Liberation Day of August 15, the expert added it will be difficult to mend the ties unless the two sides find a way to narrow down their stark differences over the forced-labor issue.

In the meantime, a Japanese government official said on Monday that it does not believe Seoul's move will greatly impact Japan, but added that Tokyo will keep an eye on the situation for now.
Yoon Jung-min, Arirang News.