The Ministry of SMEs and Startups held a meeting of the 'Task Force for Addressing Damage to SMEs Due to Middle Eastern Conflicts' in response to the rapidly changing situation in the Middle East due to the conflict between Israel and Iran.
On the 16th, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups announced that it held this TF meeting jointly with major support organizations for small and medium enterprises, including the Korea SMEs & Startups Institute (KOSI), the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Enterprises, and the Korea Small Business Corporation.
In this TF meeting, various concerns such as disruptions in export and import transactions and logistics delays were reviewed, and response measures for different conflict scenarios were discussed. Additionally, the Ministry of SMEs and Startups urged each participating organization to maintain close information sharing and collaboration systems and to actively respond to ensure prompt support in case of damage to small and medium enterprises.
So far, the impact of this situation has been assessed as limited. The Ministry of SMEs and Startups has been receiving damage reports by establishing a damage reception center at the Export Support Center of the local SMEs and Startups Agency since the military conflict between Israel and Hamas in October 2023.
The Ministry of SMEs and Startups plans to continue monitoring the ongoing impact, such as management difficulties due to surging oil prices and maritime logistics disruptions, and review necessary support measures to minimize the effects on exports while also closely cooperating with relevant ministries, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.