Do Je-hae edits news stories as part of the AI team.
Cheong Wa Dae expected to extend GSOMIA
Kim Hyun-chong, center, deputy chief of the presidential National Security Office, answers questions after a meeting with U.S. special envoy for North Korea Stephen Biegun at the Central Government Complex, in Seoul, Thursday. The senior presidential aide
By Do Je-hae
By Do Je-hae
Seoul is expected to extend its military intelligence sharing pact with Tokyo amid rising concerns about the two countries' trade row impacting Korea-Japan security cooperation.
Kim Hyun-chong, second deputy chief of the presidential National Security Office (NSO), said that he discussed the pact during a meeting with U.S. Special Representative for North Korea Stephen Biegun at the government complex in Seoul, Thursday. He said that he met with Biegun to deliver Cheong Wa Dae's position on pending issues, including extending the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA).
It is largely expected that Korea will decide to extend the pact given its symbolism as a core instrument of Korea-U.S.-Japan security cooperation amid North Korea's continued provocations. “I told him that we will give it a careful review,” Kim told reporters after his hour-long meeting with the top U.S. envoy on North Korea. “We will make a decision that is conducive to our national interest.”
Kim added that Biegun mentioned Korea-U.S,-Japan relations during the meeting. This is seen as reflecting Washington's position on maintaining the pact for security cooperation among the U.S. and two of its most important Asian allies to promote regional stability.
The Kim-Biegun talks came a few hours before Cheong Wa Dae held a National Security Council (NSC) meeting to discuss the issue. Earlier, NSO chief Chung Eui-yong met with Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon regarding the GSOMIA. “An NSC meeting started at 3:00 p.m. to discuss the extension of GSOMIA,” presidential spokeswoman Ko Min-jung texted reporters.
The Cheong Wa Dae meeting comes ahead of the Aug. 24 deadline to notify Japan on whether the agreement will be extended. It is automatically extended unless either country notifies the other of its cancelation.
Some key Cheong Wa Dae officials, including Chung indicated the possibility of this after Japan removed Korea from its whitelist of trusted trading partners, Aug. 2. Deputy NSO chief Kim also expressed doubts about sharing confidential military intelligence with Japan after the removal was confirmed.
Despite the diplomatic breakdown between the two countries over trade and historical issues, Tokyo has continued to express its desire to keep the intelligence sharing pact with Korea.
“Korea-Japan relations are facing difficulties, but it is also important to keep up cooperation on issues that require cooperation,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga told reporters Thursday during a regular briefing.
He said the pact has been renewed every year automatically since it was signed in 2016 with the perception that it contributes to regional peace and stability through Korea-Japan security cooperation.
There have been calls from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea and the other political parties to terminate the pact, saying that it was not right to share sensitive military information with a country that instigated an “economic war” with Korea. However, many experts on Korea-Japan relations have cautioned against such a drastic step given the huge symbolic significance of the GSOMIA in Korea-U.S.-Japan security cooperation.
Concerns have been rising that canceling the pact as a countermeasure to Japan's trade restrictions could further aggravate Korea-Japan relations, which have deteriorated to their worst level in decades. Such a move is feared to hamper the mood for resuming diplomatic negotiations with Japan to resolve the bilateral conflicts regarding trade and historical issues.