"This is a very complicated issue. We need to work with the industry very closely because whatever we do in this area has to make business sense otherwise our efforts will not be sustainable. We are making very careful progress, looking at both technical and economic sides of this issue," Tomita said on Tuesday.
The comments came during an interview with White House Indo-Pacific coordinator Kurt Cambell hosted by the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
President Joe Biden and Japanese Prime Minister Kishida met in Washington, DC on January 13, where the leaders discussed avenues for furthering the US-Japan alliance, Japan's national defense strategy, and other matters.
Japan in tandem with other US allies have sought to boost domestic microchip production while countering Chinese advancements. The US last month escalated efforts to undermine China's tech sector by blacklisting more than 30 entities, citing national security concerns.
Professor Sunitha Raju of the Indian Institute of Foreign Trade in New Delhi told Sputnik after the move that the the US denying Beijing access to advanced semiconductor equipment will likely accelerate China’s efforts to close the high-end microchip technology gap and control the entire value chain.
In October, the Biden administration expanded controls on the export of US semiconductor technology going to China to restrict Beijing's ability to make certain high-end microchips used in military applications. Beijing took the matter to the World Trade Organization (WTO) filing a lawsuit challenging the US export controls.
Kishida after his meeting with Biden last week said the Japanese government had decided to invest $547 million into semiconductor company Rapidus, a newly established foundry, and was going to continue to provide assistance to the industry.
In early December, Rapidus and US multinational technology corporation IBM announced a joint development cooperation as part of Japan's initiatives to expand semiconductor research, development, and manufacturing.
The Tokyo-based venture is seeking several trillion yen to help build 2-nanometer technologies and hopes to mass produce the chips in 2027 at a plant in Japan, according to The Japan Times.