Unification Minister Chung Dong-young pushed back against opposition demands for his dismissal, calling them an attempt at red-baiting. He also argued that Washington's decision to restrict intelligence sharing with Seoul — reportedly prompted by his March remarks about a North Korean nuclear facility in Kusong — was a "mistaken measure" rooted in a U.S. misunderstanding. While he repeatedly stressed that the alliance remains sound, a series of frictions in bilateral ties has prompted calls for an overhaul of the government's foreign policy and security team, not only from the opposition but from parts of the ruling party as well.
According to political sources on the 13th, Chung told a news conference at the Government Complex Seoul the previous day that "the claim by some in the opposition that the South Korea-U.S. alliance has been damaged is simply not true." Responding to calls for his removal, he said, "What should be dismissed is a biased view of the alliance," describing the demands as "red-baiting in 2026." He also rejected criticism that his North Korea policy is overly deferential, saying his stance is "neither high-handed nor submissive, but upright."
Chung rebutted point by point the allegations cited as evidence of a rift in the alliance. He dismissed as "fake news with the facts wrong" a report that National Intelligence Service Director Lee Jong-seok had sought to visit the United States in March but was denied entry. "It was a transcription of a story made up to attack the other side," he said, referring to the Lee Jae-myung administration.
On the controversy over Washington restricting intelligence sharing after he mentioned the Kusong nuclear facility in March, citing the leak of classified information, Chung called the step a "mistaken measure." He noted that he had publicly referred to the same facility in July of last year, when he was a lawmaker, and said, "At that time I was not a cabinet minister, so action should have been taken against the National Assembly or the Democratic Party of Korea." He also disclosed that he had conveyed what he described as the U.S. misunderstanding to the State Department and the South Korean Embassy in Washington.
Chung stressed that differences between Seoul and Washington over diplomatic and security issues do not amount to a crack in the alliance. "There is no U.S. ally without tension or conflict over security and trade issues," he said. "They all use national interest and autonomy as their standard, and so do we." Asked about observations that conflict among foreign policy and security ministries is deepening within the National Security Council, he said, "There is no progress through groupthink," adding that "the NSC is where different views are coordinated and reconciled."
On the land mine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone on the 21st of last month, Chung said preventing a recurrence should take priority over political wrangling. "Normal politics means discussing measures to prevent clashes in the DMZ and having the ruling and opposition parties put their heads together so that this never happens again," he said.
Despite Chung's explanations, opposition demands for his removal continued. Park Sung-hoon, chief spokesman for the People Power Party, criticized the minister's remarks the previous day as "brazen sophistry," saying Chung "fails to recognize the reality that the very existence of South Korea's unification minister is being used as a strategic asset by North Korea." Rep. Sung Il-jong of the same party said Chung "has already denied the Constitution and insulted the military, and has lost his qualifications to serve as a cabinet minister of the Republic of Korea," adding that he "is only highlighting further the need for his dismissal."
Calls for an overhaul of the foreign policy and security team also emerged within the ruling party. Rep. Park Jie-won of the Democratic Party, who served as National Intelligence Service director under the Moon Jae-in administration, appeared on a broadcast on the 11th and raised the issue of the suspension of Rep. Jung Chung-rae's U.S. visa. "Denying a visa to the leader of the governing party is a serious matter," he said, adding that "the United States will not back down as things stand" and that "the foreign policy and security team must be overhauled." Park, who like Chung and Lee is classified as part of the so-called autonomy-first camp, thus joined those calling for change in the team.
Kim Jae-chun, a professor at Sogang University's Graduate School of International Studies, said the recent friction stems in large part "from the U.S. administration's dissatisfaction that South Korea is not fulfilling its investment pledges." He added that "with the Coupang incident and the minister's Kusong remarks layered on top, a perception has spread within the U.S. administration that the South Korean government is pro-China, anti-American and anti-business."
Kim said Seoul "should move quickly to execute the $20 billion annual ceiling on investment in the United States and provide support regarding the Strait of Hormuz, even if only non-military," stressing the need to "restore a virtuous cycle in economic and security cooperation that has fallen into a vicious one."