Foreign Ministry: Inappropriate to Link Jung Chung-rae's U.S. Visa Issue to South Korea-U.S. Ties

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has stated that it is difficult to link the delay in issuing a U.S. visa for Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Jung Chung-rae to South Korea-U.S. relations.

A Foreign Ministry official said on Friday (October 9), "South Korea and the United States are closely communicating and cooperating on various pending issues, and we consider it inappropriate to link an individual visa matter (the issuance of lawmaker Jung Chung-rae's U.S. visa) to overall South Korea-U.S. relations."

The official also explained, "Details regarding individual visa applications and review outcomes are treated as confidential under U.S. domestic law and procedures," adding, "Please understand that it is difficult for the Foreign Ministry to confirm the relevant facts."

Regarding the reason for the delay, the official said, "Specific details concerning the screening process are not disclosed by the U.S. side, making it difficult for us to confirm them."

Jung, a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, was assigned to the committee's Americas audit team responsible for parliamentary audits of South Korean diplomatic missions in the Americas, including the South Korean Embassy in the United States, and was scheduled to visit destinations including the U.S. on October 11 – 12.

However, unlike other ruling and opposition lawmakers on the Americas audit team, Jung had not been issued a U.S. visa as of the previous day, prompting him to switch his assignment to the European audit team.

Jung previously visited the United States in 2012 to conduct a parliamentary audit and traveled to the U.S. in 2014 in his capacity as a lawmaker.

However, in 2013, he was assigned to the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee's Americas audit team but was unable to obtain a visa to the U.S.

He has a history of imprisonment on charges of violating the National Security Act after leading a sit-in occupation of the U.S. ambassador's residence in 1989.

The People Power Party issued a commentary that day, stating, "It is difficult to dispel doubts over whether not only Representative Jung's past history of anti-American activities, but also the failure of diplomacy toward the U.S. by the government and the ruling party, as well as fractures in trust within the South Korea-U.S. alliance, may have influenced this situation."

The Democratic Party urged the Foreign Ministry to resolve the visa problem, stating, "Restricting even the parliamentary audit of an ally's legislature does not align with the future-oriented values of the alliance," and added, "We hope the diplomatic authorities of South Korea and the United States will step forward to resolve the issue."

(Photo: Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.