Cho Hyun-dong, Korean Ambassador to the US: "US-Korea Alliance Strong Regardless of US Election Outcome"

Ambassador Cho Hyun-dong to the United States is speaking at a press briefing held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Seoul on the morning of the 25th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

원본보기 아이콘

Cho Hyun-dong, the Ambassador to the United States, said on the 25th that "regardless of the outcome of the U.S. presidential election in November, there will be no significant change in the South Korea-U.S. alliance."

Returning to Korea to attend the Overseas Diplomatic Missions Chiefs Meeting, Ambassador Cho met with reporters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the same day and said, "There have been various speculative reports about the South Korea-U.S. relationship after the election, but what is clear is that the level of the alliance is much stronger than before."

He added, "There are already multi-layered exchanges and a strong security cooperation system such as the Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG), as well as cooperation in the fields of economy, science, and technology, institutionalized to a degree that is difficult to express simply as strengthening cooperation. Since my appointment, I have met many members of Congress and U.S. think tank officials, and regardless of political orientation, there was a sense of expectation for the future of the South Korea-U.S. alliance."

Ambassador Cho explained, "The direction of the U.S. presidential election is completely unknown. The swing state moderate voters and the variable of a third-party candidate could collectively serve as indicators determining the election outcome."

As countries around the world are increasing contacts with former President Donald Trump, who has been nominated as the Republican presidential candidate ahead of the election, it is known that our government is also conducting behind-the-scenes contacts.

A government official said, "Although President Trump has made various comments, as far as we know, he has not raised fundamental issues or been negative about the South Korea-U.S. alliance," and added, "People close to Trump whom we have met also agreed on the necessity and importance of the future of the South Korea-U.S. alliance."

Regarding concerns that the defense cost-sharing agreement formed during President Joe Biden’s term could collapse if former President Trump regains power, the official refrained from commenting, saying, "It would be making too many assumptions to speak on that."

He also expressed doubts about whether it is appropriate for some countries to engage in extreme diplomatic acts, such as visiting the U.S. and meeting only with former President Trump separately.

The official said, "Looking at past reports, there were articles about the closest neighboring countries forming government-level teams in preparation for a Trump administration, and the reaction from senior U.S. officials would naturally not be positive. We are approaching this with a sense of balance."

© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.