'Korea classified DOE's ‘Other Designated Country,' says Minister Cho

On the 24th, Minister of Foreign Affairs Cho Tae-yeol addressed Korea’s inclusion on the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE)’s Sensitive Country and Other Designated Country List (SCL). “According to the U.S., South Korea is classified as ‘Other Designated Country,’ which is the lowest category and corresponds to Level 3 on the list,” he explained. "This classification is fundamentally different from Levels 1 and 2, which focus on nonproliferation and anti-terrorism.”

Speaking at the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee’s urgent current affairs report and Q&A session on the sensitive country designation, Minister Cho stated, “The U.S. Department of Energy explained that the designation resulted from a comprehensive review and strengthening of technological security in response to changes in the technological landscape driven by advances in science and technology.” He further clarified, “Korea’s inclusion in the list was not due to foreign policy issues but was related to security concerns involving a research institute under the DOE.”

Regarding speculation that a security breach at the Idaho National Laboratory (INL) under the DOE was the primary reason for Korea’s designation, Minister Cho responded, “I understand that it may be one factor, but it was not caused by that incident alone. The U.S. did not cite specific cases when explaining this issue.”

The government indicated that it is difficult to predict whether Korea will be removed from the sensitive country list before the designation takes effect on April 15. “I believe it is difficult to anticipate the timing of Korea’s exclusion," Park Sung-taek, First Vice Minister of Trade, Industry, and Energy, remarked.


이상헌 기자 dapaper@donga.com