By Chung Min-uck
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade has delayed a military pact signing with Tokyo, initially scheduled to take place Friday, after a last minute request from the ruling Saenuri Party.
Cho Byung-jae, a spokesman of the foreign ministry, told reporters the government will discuss the pact with parliamentary members before signing it after the National Assembly convenes Monday.
The delay caused a stir as the decision was made an hour before the two sides were set to ink the first such agreement since Korea was freed from Japanese occupation in 1945.
Delaying the signing ceremony without giving prior notice to Tokyo is not only diplomatically incorrect, but also reflects that foreign policy is being swayed by domestic politics here.
Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan ordered South Korean Ambassador to Japan Shin Kak-soo not to sign the deal an hour before the envoy was to do so with Japanese Foreign Minister Koichiro Genba, after receiving a phone call from the floor leader of the ruling party, Rep. Lee Hahn-koo, who requested a delay. Following the shift in the Saenuri Party’s position on the pact, which was originally in support of the military agreement with Tokyo, the ministry decided to postpone the deal. Reportedly, Kim, after getting approval from President Lee Myung-bak, ordered Ambassador Shin not to go ahead.
Insiders say the last minute shift in the ruling party’s position came against the backdrop of the growing anti-Japanese sentiment here following a series of diplomatic spats, such as the unsettled compensation for Korean war-time victims.
Politicians are sensitive to public sentiment as the presidential election is just six months away.
South Korea and Japan have sought to sign the agreement on protecting classified military information exchanged between the two nations, also known as the General Security of Military Information Act (GSOMIA), despite criticism from opposition parties.
Officials here claim the deal will help the two countries share intelligence on North Korea’s missile and nuclear programs and also obtain classified information on China. Under the envisioned agreement, exchanged information is not to be released to a third country without the approval of the counterpart. Seoul and Tokyo already have the same agreement signed with Washington.
Seoul has also signed the bilateral intelligence pact with 24 other countries, including the Australia and Canada.
Following reports Thursday that the government approved the deal at the Prime Minister’s Office behind closed doors, criticism has been mounting among civic groups and political parties.
It is considered a sensitive issue in Korea as the intelligence agreement, if signed, will mark the first military accord between the two countries since Japan’s colonial rule of Korea ended in 1945.
Animosity still lingers as Tokyo continues to deny past wrongdoings during the 1910 to 1945 period and refuses to compensate victims of sexual slavery and forcible conscription.
The clandestine handling of the deal by the government added fuel to the fire.
“The behind-the-scenes approval of the deal was due to Japan’s request. It is hard to believe the South Korean government can ignore the voice of the people and legislative procedure just because Japan requests it,” Rep. Park Jie-won, floor leader of the DUP, said. “There will be a new 21st century version of an independence movement to prevent the deal from coming into effect.”
The DUP insists the GSOMIA needs the approval of the National Assembly before being signed.
On Friday, DUP members held a rally to protest the government’s decision to sign the pact with Japan.