Kang Kyung-wha, the Korean Ambassador to the United States, stated that the limitations on information sharing between South Korea and the U.S. represent one of the most challenging issues in their diplomatic relations.
On October 12, during a National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee audit in Washington, D.C., Kang responded to a question about the difficult issues in South Korea-U.S. relations, saying, "The topic of information cooperation is the most frequently discussed."
She added, "The issue of strategic investment in the U.S. was the most challenging part before the announcement of the top project, including the Alaska LNG investment project."
Kang revealed that concerns regarding information sharing were raised during a meeting between South Korean Foreign Minister Park Jin and U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on September 18, stating, "There were comments indicating that there are issues with information cooperation."
When asked about South Korea's response to Rubio's request, she said, "I do not believe that the issues have been sufficiently resolved to the extent that the U.S. expects."
Kang also mentioned that she received a call from Unification Minister Jeong Dong-young following his remarks about North Korea's nuclear facilities, clarifying that the concerns were about the statement itself, not about Jeong personally.
She noted, "Minister Jeong conveyed such messages through the usual channels of communication, but I cannot comment on how U.S. authorities reacted to his explanation."
Kang stated, "The National Intelligence Service is continuously responding regarding information cooperation, and I understand that communication between the two intelligence agencies is ongoing and has made progress."
She acknowledged, "I admit that there are limitations in communication with the White House. While I frequently meet with the National Security Council and key figures at the White House, I feel frustrated that high-level discussions are not occurring as much as I would like."
Regarding the possibility of a North Korea-U.S. summit, she said, "There is always a possibility, but it is difficult to quantify. As far as I know, there are no specific developments at this time."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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