Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, said on the 16th, "We should not just seek economic cooperation with Japan, but rather we need to create an economic community."
On the same day, Chairman Chey appeared on the YouTube channel "Knowledge PLAY with Kim Ji-yoon" and noted, "The growth of our country has reached a stage where it is almost at a standstill." He added, "Now, the potential growth rate has started to fall to the 0% range, and we cannot help but question whether we can survive with the same methods we have been using until now." He emphasized the need to create a community like the European Union (EU) and stated that he shares this perspective with many people in Japan, who also seem to have similar thoughts.
Chairman Chey defined the current situation as an era of protectionism. He said, "There have been almost no changes in tariff policies from the first term of the Trump administration to the Biden administration. We will not abandon the trend of protectionism." He mentioned that considering Korea's geopolitical position between China and Japan, Japan is the only country with a similar situation that can share the benefits of cooperation.
Chairman Chey stated that if the two countries form an economic community, the effects would be that "the market will naturally grow, and we can create a low-cost society." He added, "There would be no reason to create all options within our country." Regarding the long-standing historical conflicts between the two nations, he remarked, "That is something we must overcome; it seems that the choice of saying we should not do it because it is the problem is not in our hands."
Chairman Chey referenced the historical relations between Germany and France, stating, "These countries faced much greater conflicts than Korea and Japan, but they overcame those issues." He continued, "Given the many challenges of this era, it is a time that requires ideas we could not have imagined before. It is time to devise a way to live together."
Chairman Chey emphasized, "If we continue to export and generate surpluses as we are now, it will lead to trade friction and diplomatic issues." He stated, "As the risk increases significantly, we need to change our model. We should adopt methods that invest overseas and generate revenue. This is a methodology that Japan is already using quite a bit."