Friends or ‘frenemies’? South Korea fails to meet obligations of military intelligence sharing deal with Japan
Known as the General Security of Military Information Agreement, the pact was signed in late November 2016 under president at the time, Park Geun-hye
South Korea is failing to meet the terms of an agreement reached last year with Japan to share a wide array of military intelligence, according to a report in Japan’s Asahi newspaper.
An unnamed source in the Japanese armed forces claimed that the only information that Seoul has shared to date relates directly to North Korea’s nuclear and missile programmes. Data that South Korean has gathered on the activities of the Chinese military in the South China Sea, for example, has not been provided, the source said.
Known as the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA), the pact was signed in late November 2016 under president at the time, Park Geun-hye. Seoul hoped to use Japan’s advanced information-gathering capabilities, while analysts were given access to high-resolution images captured by Japanese satellites and additional information on the North’s missile launches from submarines.
At present, Japan operates five surveillance satellites, six Aegis-equipped destroyers, four land-based radar installations with a range of more than 1,000km, early-warning aircraft and 77 maritime patrol aircraft.
