South Korea, France agree to launch automotive working group, expand joint research

South Korea and France have agreed to establish a working group on automotive industry cooperation, with Seoul asking Paris to ensure Korean companies are not discriminated against under the EU's Industrial Acceleration Act.

South Korea's Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy said Kim Young-man, director general for trade policy, and Thomas Courbe, director general for enterprises at France's Ministry of Economy and Finance, co-chaired the 21st Korea-France Industrial Cooperation Committee and the 9th New Industries Technology Cooperation Forum on Wednesday at the Pullman Ambassador Hotel in Seoul. The two sides discussed cooperation in advanced industries — including automotive, shipbuilding and biotech — as well as critical mineral supply chains.

The meetings were organized as a follow-up to the South Korean president's visit to France in September, aimed at strengthening bilateral cooperation in new industries.

Seoul asked Paris to help ensure South Korea is included among trusted partner countries under the EU's Industrial Acceleration Act, which applies domestic production requirements to EU public procurement and subsidy support.

South Korea also conveyed concerns about the joint automotive declaration France and Germany agreed on last month, urging that Korean-made vehicles not face discriminatory treatment.

The two countries agreed to launch an automotive working group as a follow-up to the industrial cooperation MOU they signed in September.

The working group will address France's electric vehicle subsidy regime and automotive supply chain cooperation. At the New Industries Technology Cooperation Forum, the two sides also discussed joint R&D in manufacturing AI transformation — known as M.AX — and deep tech.

Since 2014 through last year, the two countries have jointly funded 24 projects totaling 53.1 billion won ($39.6 million), generating commercialization sales and patent outcomes. Companies from both sides — including Hankook & Company, Naver Cloud, Mistral AI and Thales Korea — shared technology trends and real-world application cases through presentations and explored avenues for further cooperation.

"We will continue to expand bilateral cooperation through government channels such as advanced industry working groups and the industrial cooperation committee," Kim said. "We will also actively support joint R&D and market expansion by combining Korea's manufacturing data foundation with France's deep tech capabilities in AI and quantum technologies."