The government is reportedly speeding up preparations to file a complaint with the World Trade Organization (WTO) as Japan is set to remove South Korea from its "whitelist" of trusted trading partners.

After participating in a WTO meeting to win global support for Seoul's position on Tokyo's export curbs, Deputy Trade Minister Kim Seung-ho said on Friday that the government plans to file a complaint with the WTO on a date convenient for South Korea. The complaint procedure would begin with Seoul's request for consultation to Tokyo.

The government will also use a regional forum to seek a diplomatic solution. Foreign Minister Kang Kyung-wha will attend the ASEAN Regional Forum set to open in Thailand on Friday and attention is being drawn on whether a ministerial meeting among South Korea, the United States and Japan will be held on the sidelines of the forum.

In addition, the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy plans to hold sessions for 20 South Korean industry sectors to explain Japan's planned new export restrictions and help them prepare for the move.

Japan's Yomiuri Shimbun daily reported earlier that the Japanese government will decide on Friday during a Cabinet meeting whether to remove South Korea from its list of countries that enjoy preferential treatment in trade.