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February 16, 2008
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| WASHINGTON ― A U.S. Congressman submitted a bill this week to upgrade Korea’s status for its purchase of American weapons. Representative Ed Royce, a Republican from California, said Thursday he introduced a bill to improve defense cooperation between Seoul and Washington. The legislation would upgrade Korea’s status to that of members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, just as it has done with Australia, New Zealand and Japan. According to Royce, Korea imported $3.7 billion worth of arms from the United States in the last year alone. He noted the amount is more than any of the other three nations. If the bill is approved, Korea would be allowed to purchase more advanced U.S. arms, including F-22s and the Global Hawk, an unmanned spy aircraft. If the bill is passed, U.S. congressional approval for Korean arms purchases would be quickened from the current 50 days to 15 days. A similar bill was introduced by Senator Christopher Bond at the end of last year. No action has been taken. The National Assembly in Seoul has adopted a resolution calling for the upgrade. It sent letters to President George W. Bush, the U.S. secretaries of defense and state, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. By Kang Chan-ho JoongAng Ilbo [myoja@joongang.co.kr] |
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