Cho Hyun: “Will ask the U.S. to issue a visa after refusal” ... Parties clash over denial of entry to Jin Sung-joon

[Financial News] Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said he would ask the U.S. to rectify its refusal to issue a visa to Jin Sung-joon, a lawmaker with the Democratic Party of Korea.
Cho said he planned to ask the U.S. to issue the visa promptly, calling the refusal of a U.S. visa for Rep. Jin “undesirable.” He was speaking to reporters at Incheon International Airport on the morning of the 29th, before departing for the U.S. to attend the Group of Twenty (G20) Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.
Cho is scheduled to visit Atlanta, U.S., from the 29th through November 2 to attend the G20 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, and to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Cho had earlier pledged during a recent National Assembly audit by the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee to send the U.S. a letter protesting its refusal to grant a U.S. visa to Rep. Chung Cheong-rae.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, however, believes the refusal to issue a U.S. visa to Jin has not been fully resolved.
A Foreign Ministry official said, “Information related to individual visa applications and the results of their review is treated as confidential under U.S. domestic law and procedures, and we understand that the relevant process has not yet concluded.” The official added, “It is difficult to confirm details of the review because the U.S. side does not disclose them.”
The U.S. has refused to issue visas to some lawmakers from the ruling party, using their past and recent conduct as a pretext.
Rep. Chung’s history of such activities as occupying the U.S. Embassy in his youth became an obstacle, while recent critical remarks by Rep. Jin about General Xavier T. Brunson, commander of United States Forces Korea (USFK), appear to have become an issue.
The possibility was raised that Jin’s past conviction in 1991 for violating the National Security Act, for which he was sentenced to three years in prison and three years’ suspension of qualifications, may have influenced the decision. The U.S. side reportedly asked Jin to submit the past court ruling. Jin’s side is said to have submitted the documents.
The National Defense Committee has organized a delegation to visit the U.S. Pacific Command from November 1 to 5 to strengthen South Korea-U.S. security cooperation and discuss ways to advance the alliance.
The delegation is led by committee chair Jin and consists of Democratic Party of Korea ranking member Rep. Kim Byung-joo, People Power Party ranking member Rep. Lim Jong-deuk, and Reform Party Rep. Chun Ha-ram. The delegation has also finalized its schedule for meetings with key figures, including U.S. Pacific commander Navy Admiral Samuel Paparo.
The parties are divided over the U.S. refusal to issue a visa to Rep. Jin. It was confirmed that calls for protesting to the U.S. repeatedly surfaced in group chats among Democratic Party lawmakers. However, Rep. Hong Ki-won, the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, urged caution, saying the matter could be a working-level issue.
In a statement by its spokesperson, the People Power Party criticized the Lee Jae Myung administration’s diplomacy, saying, “It disparages a military commander of an ally and even denigrates the meaning of the alliance forged amid the national crisis of the Korean War, yet when abnormal signs emerge in South Korea-U.S. relations, it puts only expressions of regret first.” The party also stressed, “We cannot help but ask whether the Lee Jae Myung administration is fanning the flames of a deteriorating alliance with irresponsible remarks and diplomatic discord.”

[email protected] Kim Kyung-soo Reporter