SK Group Chairman and Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Chey Tae-won, second from left, visits the Osaka Expo site in Japan on Sept. 15. [KOREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY]

SK Group Chairman and Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry Chairman Chey Tae-won, second from left, visits the Osaka Expo site in Japan on Sept. 15. [KOREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY]

 
SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won, who also heads the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), has called for deeper economic integration between Korea and Japan, similar to that of the European Union (EU).
 
In an interview with Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun published on Monday, Chey said Korea’s consideration to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) is welcome, but that a closer, more binding form of cooperation with Japan is needed.
 
 
Yomiuri reported that the interview took place during Chey’s visit to the Osaka Expo site on Sept. 15.
 
“Joining the CPTPP is good, but we need more than a loose economic alliance — we need full economic integration like the EU,” Chey said.
 
The CPTPP is a multilateral FTA launched in 2018, led by Japan and other countries. Korea announced on Sept. 3 that it would begin reviewing membership. Chey argued that Korea and Japan should go a step further toward forming an economic community with binding rules, similar to the EU, which eliminates trade and investment barriers among its members and uses a single currency.
 
“Trade between Korea and Japan has increased significantly, but we can no longer rely on trade alone for shared economic growth,” Chey said. “If we achieve a Korea-Japan economic community, we can reduce social and economic security costs and become the world’s fourth-largest economic bloc after the United States, EU, and China.”
 
Chey cited cooperation in artificial intelligence and semiconductors as promising areas. “We are discussing semiconductor technology development with NTT [Nippon Telegraph and Telephone] and have active exchanges with Tokyo Electron,” he said on SK’s partnerships in Japan. “If the environment allows, we are ready to make larger investments in Japan.”
 
With growing U.S. and Chinese economic pressure, there have been increasing calls from many industries for Korea and Japan to strengthen their cooperation in energy and critical resource supply chains, as well as in economic security. 
 
However, achieving the level of integration Chey proposes would require overcoming longstanding historical and territorial disputes. Changes in administration have often reignited past conflicts and disrupted economic ties, which highlights the need to build firm mutual trust first.
 
As chair of the CEO Summit to be held during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) forum in Gyeongju at the end of October, Chey added, “The CEO Summit will be a place to discuss how to respond to growing protectionism and shape a better business environment. We are also considering a meeting of Korean and Japanese business leaders to explore future cooperation.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM MIN-YOUNG [[email protected]]