Opposition agrees to dismiss defense minister over military pact with Japan

By Park Sae-jin Posted : November 15, 2016, 13:13 Updated : November 15, 2016, 13:13

A file picture on South Korea's defense minister.[Yonhap News Photo]


Opposition parties agreed Monday to push for the dismissal of Defense Minister Han Min-koo through a parliamentary vote over the provisional signing of an information-sharing military accord between South Korean and Japan.

The move came a day after the General Security of Military Information Agreement was signed in Tokyo. The country's three opposition parties would submit a motion for Han's dismissal on November 2 and seek a vote at the opposition-controlled National Assembly on December 2.

South Korea and Japan initiated the pact in 2012, but Seoul scrapped it due to strong protests by opposition parties and civic groups. The two nations resumed negotiations this year, citing high tensions prompted by North Korea's missile and nuclear tests.

Opposition parties insisted the pact could escalate tension in and around the Korean Peninsula and expressed concern about the militaristic tone of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

The South's defense ministry insisted the pact would help Seoul and Tokyo share extensive military information on North Korea. Especially, Seoul would gain intelligence collected by Japan's surveillance satellites and Aegis-equipped destroyers.

Ties between Seoul and Tokyo have soured due to territorial and historical disputes. Many South Koreans still harbor deep resentment against Japan over its 1910-45 colonial rule, and Seoul wants Tokyo to make a sincere apology and make amends for past wrongdoings.

Aju News Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
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