President Moon Jae-in met with U.S. Senator John McCain in Blair House, the U.S. presidential guest house, for 40 minutes from 3:00 this afternoon. He is currently serving as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Armed Services. Thanking the President for meeting him, Senator McCain said President Moon had left a good impression when he answered questions in a composed manner during a meeting with leaders of the U.S. Senate the day before. He went on to say that what he wanted to make clear in regard to the North Korean nuclear issue was that policies of the previous three U.S. Administrations were a failure and that it was time to seek new approaches. He added that the national security team of President Trump was the best ever and that he focused on the President’s actions rather than his words. Senator McCain also touched upon Korea-Japan relations, saying that he very well understood many issues between the two countries, which were heartbreaking and dented the pride of the Korean people. He continued to say that though those matters were sensitive and difficult to solve, he wished President Moon luck in addressing them.

In reply, President Moon expressed gratitude to the new U.S. Administration for placing the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue at the top of its diplomatic priorities. He went on to say that he was convinced that this issue would be resolved without fail if Korea and the United States worked together on the same page. He singled out as a great achievement that his visit to the United States this time could fill the diplomatic void left unattended for several months and reaffirm the staunch ROK-U.S. alliance. It was also rewarding, he added, that he could start off by building friendship and trust with President Trump whose term in office would overlap with his own for a long while. He continued to explain that the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue would be impossible without united action anchored in the solid ROK-U.S. alliance and that he would endeavor together based on such a premise.

Expressing gratitude for the Korean Government`s cooperation and assistance for the relocation of U.S. military bases to Pyeongtaek, Senator McCain said that the two countries were going through a challenging period. He then emphasized that, even though there remained different views between the two nations, it was possible to address them by engaging in dialogue and negotiations as partners.

In reply, President Moon said the Pyeongtaek base, which would be a state-of-the-art complex, measuring 4.5 million pyeong, was the largest of its kind in the world, adding that Korea shouldered about US$10 billion out of the total costs. The President went on to say that the Korean Government provided sites for other U.S. bases in Korea at no cost. Noting that Korea was one of the countries with the highest defense expenditures as a percentage of GDP and was one of the high-ranking U.S. allies in terms of imports of weapons from the country, President Moon asked the Senator to expound on these points when there was a chance to discuss cost-sharing concerning the stationing of the U.S. forces in Korea.  

Senator McCain said it would be good to continuously remind the American public of those facts. He went on to say that President Moon’s visit to the United States has been very successful and there have been only positive evaluations of the visit on the media and reports, adding that it has been a good start for his five-year term. The Senator said there are many people in the United States like him who could help Korea.

President Moon expressed gratitude to Senator McCain for raising opposition to President Trump when the U.S. President mentioned that Korea needed to shoulder the expense of the THAAD deployment. President Moon went on to say that he believed that keeping procedural legitimacy in relation to the THAAD deployment was a shortcut to lead the people in the right way, stressing that a right decision would be made based on the spirit of the strong ROK-U.S. alliance. In reply, Senator McCain said he believed that President Moon’s conducting an environmental impact assessment was a right thing to do.