 |
| President Yoon Suk Yeol, left, and U.S. President Joe Biden pay tribute at the Korean War Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C., Tuesday (local time). Yonhap |
By Lee Hyo-jin
President Yoon Suk Yeol said the U.S. government's alleged surveillance of his senior officials will not shake the ironclad trust between the two nations, downplaying the spying scandal ahead of his summit with U.S. President Joe Biden.
"I believe that this matter is no reason to shake the ironclad trust that supports the U.S.-South Korea alliance, because it is based on shared values like freedom," Yoon was quoted as saying in an interview with NBC released on Wednesday, when asked about recent allegations that the Pentagon spied on South Korean officials.
In response to a straightforward question by the anchor asking, "Do friends spy on friends?" the president replied, "Generally speaking, I don't think that in the real world, it is something that is prohibited in state affairs," defending Washington's apparent spying on its ally.
He added, "The most important thing is trust. When you have that trust, you don't get shaken."
Pentagon documents leaked earlier this month contained conversations between top security officials in Korea who were grappling over a request from Washington to provide ammunition to Ukraine. South Korea has maintained its official position of not providing lethal weapons to Kyiv.
Another leaked document showed concerns among senior South Korean presidential officials that artillery shells Korea was selling to the U.S. may end up in Ukraine.
During the interview, Yoon also said Korea is not under any pressure from the White House to step up aid to Ukraine, shaking off speculations that Seoul is coming under mounting pressure from its Western allies to provide lethal weapons to Kyiv.
Yoon's interview with the American media outlet came hours before the leaders of the two nations held a summit at the White House on Wednesday evening (local time). Yoon is currently on a state visit to Washington marking the 70th anniversary of the ROK-U.S. alliance.
 |
| President Yoon Suk Yeol and his wife Kim Keon Hee look around a photo exhibition held to celebrate 70 years of alliance between South Korea and the U.S., at a hotel in Washington, Tuesday (local time). Joint Press Corps |
The president's remarks were seen as the latest move by the Korean government to minimize the severity of the U.S. surveillance incident.
When allegations were first raised some two weeks ahead of Yoon's state visit to the U.S., Korea's Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup said that a considerable amount of information in the leaked documents was fabricated. The presidential office said Washington did not have any "malicious intent" regarding the spying allegations.
Hong Hyun-ik, former chancellor of the Korea National Diplomatic Academy, believes that by defending the U.S. over the espionage allegations, the Korean government lost a chance to use the sensitive issue for its own benefit.
"Surveillance is a serious diplomatic discourtesy. Rather than just pushing down the allegations, the Yoon government should have strategically used it as a diplomatic card in negotiations with the U.S." Hong said.
Meanwhile, during the interview with NBC, Yoon also touched on the Taiwan issue, reiterating that he "opposes any attempt to change the status quo by force."
Yun Sun, a senior fellow and co-director of the East Asia Program at the Stimson Center, thinks that the Yoon government clearly prefers strengthening the security alliance with the U.S., sometimes at the cost of its relations with China.
"Closer alignment with the U.S. and a balancing act between U.S. and China, these are two different paths," she said, adding that Yoon is clearly leaning toward Washington. "That is a policy choice of a sovereign government."
![[INTERVIEW] With '30 Days,' Kang Ha-neul finds new level of comfort in acting](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/83a5770de8d8420da3634fb8b78266c1.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
![[INTERVIEW] ONEUS returns as 'mermaid prince'](https://img.koreatimes.co.kr/upload/thumbnailV2/8cc3b8d992cd4b8bb43395b014670ca2.jpg/dims/resize/178/optimize)
