The leaders of South Korea's two main parties both stressed the importance of cooperation with the United States in separate meetings with U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel, but diverged on where the alliance stands and how it should evolve. Kim Min-seok, leader of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, emphasized strengthening South Korea's self-reliant capabilities on the premise of a solid alliance, while Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the main opposition People Power Party, voiced concern about the current state of the alliance and called for an "upgrade."
The two leaders each received Steel on the 15th when she visited the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul. The meetings were her first formal introductory talks with the party leaders, coming 25 days after she paid a courtesy call on National Assembly Speaker Cho Jung-sik shortly after taking office last month.
Kim stressed the importance of relations with Washington, saying, "The process of South Korea building self-reliant capabilities does not conflict with deepening the alliance with the United States." The remark was read as an attempt to dispel concerns in some quarters that strengthening self-reliance, including the transfer of wartime operational control, could weaken the alliance.
Jang, by contrast, expressed a sense of crisis over the alliance. "I have many worries and concerns about where the South Korea-U.S. alliance stands and where it is headed," he said. "The path to strengthening and upgrading the alliance is for the two countries to share values more firmly, reinforce their solidarity and expand common interests over the long term."
The two also differed clearly on the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and on how to view North Korea. Rather than separately citing security threats from the North, Kim pointed to U.S. President Donald Trump's interest in North Korea and said, "I hope U.S.-North Korea relations develop and help advance peace on the Korean Peninsula."
Jang cited North Korea's dispatch of troops to the war between Russia and Ukraine and its missile provocations, arguing that security on the peninsula is the "first task" facing the two allies. Turning to China, he said, "South Korea and the United States must stand together against moves to shake the regional order and alter trade arrangements."
