‘Ending GSOMIA is not an option,’ Japanese Defense Minister says

Japanese Defense Minister Takeshi Iwaya said on Tuesday that Japan is not considering an end to the General Security of Military Information Agreement. He remarked at a regular press conference that coalition matters between Washington and Tokyo; Tokyo and Seoul; and the three of them to ensure regional peace and stability, stressing that Japan aspires to work together with Korea on any issue that requires close cooperation.

The GSOMIA, which took effect in November 2016, stays effective for a year. If none of the parties does notify the other of an end to the agreement by Aug. 24 - 90 days before the expiration, it is to remain effective automatically for an extra year. Japan put emphasis on security cooperation with Korea to keep China in check and showed positive response to an extension of the GSOMIA. However, things have changed since Japan strengthened controls of semiconductor exports to Korea on July 4. “Korea aspires to maintain the agreement at present but there is a possibility to revisit it, if necessary,” South Korean national security adviser Chung Eui-yong said.

The Japanese government takes non-sense stance on export controls while hoping for security cooperation with Korea. The Asahi Shimbun reported Tuesday that the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry held a one-hour briefing session with around 20 major foreign embassy officials to Tokyo. The Japanese government reportedly reiterated the current argument that export limits do have little to do with the forced labor issue.


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