Trade wars at the intersection of memory and industrial policy in Japan and South Korea

Japan-South Korea trade frictions highlight the intersection of the politics of memory and identity with economic competition and industrial policy. The policy mechanisms show how states use national security-related non-tariff barriers to avoid sanctions from trade institutions via points of supply chain vulnerability. Both Japan and South Korea leveraged their economic ties to help advance domestic political goals related to the contested memory of Japan's violent occupation of South Korea. Japan utilized its export control system in ways that threatened South Korea's export-oriented economic system, leveraging a supply chain choke point to further industrial policy goals in the semiconductor industry where they were able to potentially cause significant damage to the Korean economy. While Japan's weaponization of trade has not shifted the underlying dynamics of the semiconductor market, it has provided them with more leverage in navigating the politics of memory.