Chosun Ilbo reported on the 30th that the US side said the Trump administration puts American national interest first, amid a row over the denial of Democratic Party defense committee chair Jin Sung-jun’s official US visa and the hold on former party leader Jung Chung-rae’s. Seoul says individual visa cases should not be linked to overall Korea-US relations.
Chosun Ilbo reported in the early hours of the 30th that the US side had said the Trump administration places American national interest first in the visa dispute over the two lawmakers. The speaker’s title and exact wording could not be separately confirmed in our reporting, so this account relies on the headline and on the publicly stated reactions of the Korean government and parties.
광고 문의 · 300×250The dispute began on the 28th. Jin Sung-jun, chair of the National Assembly’s defense committee, said his official A-2 visa, applied for on October 12, had been denied, putting in doubt the committee’s planned November 1-5 visit to US Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii. Busan Ilbo reported that Jung Chung-rae, whose visa stayed ‘under review’, switched his audit trip from the US embassy to Europe.
Reaction from Seoul and the ruling party
On the 29th the Foreign Ministry said linking an individual visa case to overall Korea-US relations is inappropriate and that it expects Washington to cooperate so lawmakers’ official activities can proceed smoothly. Foreign Minister Cho Hyun, leaving for the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting in Atlanta, called the matter ‘undesirable’ and said he would ask the US to issue the visas quickly, according to Ajunews and Busan Ilbo.
Views inside the ruling party differed. Lawmakers including Kim Tae-nyeon called it improper treatment of an allied legislature and demanded a satisfactory explanation and correction, while some floated diplomatic steps such as summoning the US ambassador. Hong Ki-won, a former diplomat, said US visa and immigration rules have tightened sharply, consular officers decide case by case, and over-reading the matter does not serve the national interest.
The visa type and the open questions
According to The Segye, unlike the diplomatic A-1, the A-2 visa is reviewed individually by a consular officer, and US immigration law lists legal violations and security risks as grounds for refusal. Jin has a 1991 National Security Act conviction, the US side has asked for the court ruling, and the reason for refusal has not been made public. National Intelligence Service director Lee Jong-seok reportedly said this reflects a general tightening of US entry procedures rather than a Korea-US clash.
The opposition People Power Party framed it as a security issue. Chief spokesperson Park Sung-hoon called it a symbolic sign of a crack in the alliance, and supreme council member Shin Dong-wook pointed to the two men’s past conduct as a possible factor. The government and ruling party stress that such readings are unconfirmed, and the dispute is likely to continue until Washington gives an official reason.
