The government has decided to import 20-thousand liters of urea water solution, an additive used in diesel vehicles to reduce emissions, from Australia this week. 

The government announced the decision on Sunday after a high-level economic strategy meeting chaired by Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki. It plans to mobilize military aircraft to swiftly bring in the shipment.

However, 20-thousand liters is not enough to satisfy daily demand and the government plans to seek consultation with Vietnam and other urea producers to explore ways to import thousands of tons within this year. 

The government will continue diplomatic discussions asking China to speed up its customs clearances for orders that were supposed to be shipped into South Korea under existing contracts. 

In addition, the government plans to crack down on market manipulation such as hoarding and marking up prices.