Lee Chang-yoon, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Science and ICT, noted regarding the U.S. Department of Energy's designation of sensitive countries, “There are no issues with (scientific and technological) cooperation with the United States, and we confirmed our willingness to cooperate in the future.
On the afternoon of the 19th, the Ministry of Science and ICT held a meeting to strengthen Korea-U.S. scientific and technological cooperation with government-funded research institutes in Daejeon, Daedeok Special Zone. A total of 12 institutions, including the National Research Council of Science and Technology, the Korea Institute of Science and Technology, the Korea Institute of Energy Technology, and the Korea Atomic Energy Research Institute, attended the meeting, with over 30 participants.
Before the meeting, the Ministry of Science and ICT shared information regarding the scientific and technological trends of the new U.S. government and the situation related to the U.S. Department of Energy's designation of sensitive countries. The ministry stated that it is actively consulting with the White House, the Department of Energy, and the Department of State.
The Vice Minister stated regarding the U.S. Department of Energy's designation of sensitive countries, “The Ministry of Science and ICT confirmed that there are no issues with scientific and technological cooperation through dialogue with the Department of Energy and that we have the willingness to cooperate in the future” and added, “We will continue to make efforts to resolve the issues in collaboration with related ministries.”
The Vice Minister added, “Despite the clear statement from the U.S. Department of Energy that there are no issues with scientific and technological cooperation due to the designation of sensitive countries, there are many concerns everywhere, and I am worried that anxiety in the scientific and technological community is increasing and morale may decline.”
On this day, the Ministry of Science and ICT also had time to check the ongoing cooperative projects with the United States of various funded research institutes. The Vice Minister said, “To continuously strengthen scientific and technological cooperation with the new U.S. government, the role of our funded research institutes, which have a cooperative network with U.S. national laboratories and prestigious universities, is very important” and added, “We will actively support efforts to ensure that the cooperative projects of funded research institutes can be further expanded and progressed, including arranging high-level meetings with the new U.S. government in the future.”