Anchor: The Ministry of Environment has decided to file a complaint with prosecutors against Audi Volkswagen Korea, raising issue with the company’s recall plan in response to its emissions-cheating scandal revealed last year.
Our Bae Joo-yon has more.
 
Report: Environmental authorities have decided to file a complaint with the prosecution against Johannes Thammer, the head of Audi Volkswagen Korea.

The decision announced on Tuesday came after the Ministry of Environment raised issue with follow-up steps taken by the subsidiary brand of Volkswagen Group in the wake of the German automaker’s emissions-rigging scandal.

Last November, the ministry ordered the recall of 125-thousand Volkswagen diesel vehicles in South Korea that were found to have cheated emissions test results. It also slapped a fine of 14-point-one billion won, or eleven-point-six million U.S. dollars, on the German automaker. 

Following the measure, the automaker submitted a rectification report on January sixth, which the ministry assessed to be largely insufficient.

Authorities said the report failed to address the cause of the vehicles' defects and had inadequate plans to recall the problematic cars. 

Under the nation's Clean Air Conservation Act, an entity that does not follow the order to correct defects is subject to a prison sentence of five years or less, or a fine of 30 million won or less.
 
The ministry said it will mull over seeking criminal charges against the firm after examining suspicions that the indoor qualification tests of Volkswagen units with faulty devices exceeded acceptable emission standards and that some of the manufacturer's vehicles did not obtain necessary certification.

Meanwhile, Volkswagen Group and Audi Volkswagen Korea said they are negotiating with the government to set a timeline for recalls in the first half of this year. 

Audi Volkswagen Korea said Tuesday that it is trying its best to solve the emissions issue, adding a detailed recall plan will be confirmed once the Environment Ministry approves the solution proposed by its headquarters in Germany. 

The auto firm added it sent officials from the German headquarters to Seoul's Ministry of Environment on Tuesday to explain a technical solution in detail.
 
Currently, at least nine-and-a-half million cars manufactured by Volkswagen Group worldwide are estimated to be equipped with software that can be used to cheat on emissions tests. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency revealed Volkswagen’s emissions-cheating scandal last September.
Bae Joo-yon, KBS World Radio News.