00:00President Trump's pressure is getting stronger and stronger.
00:03As the government is considering sending troops to the Hormuz Strait, this time he is intensifying
00:07pressure on Korea by sharing a column insisting that Korea should sell the Cheonggong-2 to
00:11Ukraine.
00:11President Trump posted this message on his social media Truth Social on September 4th
00:16local time.
00:16This column is from the Washington Post.
00:18In this column, Trump argues that Korea should be pressured to sell its own stockpile of
00:22the Cheonggong-2, which is called the Korean Patriot, to Ukraine.
00:24He argued that, in order to improve relations, Korea should provide interceptor missiles
00:28to Ukraine to lessen the burden on the United States.
00:31However, President Trump seemed to agree with this statement, as he was seen sharing this
00:35column.
00:35The person who posted this column is Mark Thiessen, who is known as a foreign affairs and security
00:39expert in the US conservative camp, and is also known as someone President Trump seeks
00:43advice from.
00:44Of course, President Trump only shared the title and link of this column on Truth Social
00:48without adding any further comments.
00:50There is a tension on the possibility that President Trump's sharing of the column may
00:53have been intended to pressure South Korea to sell Cheonggong-2 missiles to Ukraine.
00:56Usually, President Trump tends to upload reports and columns that are favorable to him or that
01:00he likes.
01:01This weapon, called Cheonggong, is a core asset of South Korea's air defense system along
01:04with the Patriot.
01:05It intercepts aircraft at a medium altitude of about 15 to 20 kilometers.
01:08It was fielded in the 2020s and has been exported to the UAE and Saudi Arabia.
01:12It has been exported to major Middle Eastern countries such as Iraq, and especially during
01:16the Middle East conflict, news spread that the Cheonggong-2 batteries in the UAE achieved
01:19significant results, attracting worldwide attention.
01:22However, Mark Basin argued in his column that if the Cheonggong-2 is sold to Ukraine, its
01:26performance can be tested against North Korean missiles supplied to Russia, and that this
01:29would also enhance Korea's national prestige.
01:32It seems that President Trump is also showing some agreement with this.
01:35Above all, Ukraine currently desperately wants this.
01:37Ukraine has repeatedly requested air defense support from Korea, especially mentioning the
01:41increase in North Korean troop deployments.
01:43This isn't just coming from President Zelensky of Ukraine.
01:46People from all walks of life in Ukraine are continuously expressing the same sentiment.
01:49Ukraine also continues to cross the line.
01:51A former Ukrainian foreign minister once harshly criticized Korea, saying that Korea would
01:55be judged for not providing weapons, which caused a lot of public outrage among Koreans.
02:00This was actually said by Dmitryo Kuleba, the former Ukrainian foreign minister.
02:03Former Foreign Minister Kuleba stated that Russia believes it will be difficult for Ukraine
02:07to improve its ballistic missile defense capabilities in a short period of time, so it is reducing the
02:11production of other weapons and investing significant resources into the production of ballistic
02:14missiles.
02:15He also revealed that North Korea is even supplying missiles, and that these missiles are being
02:19used to attack Ukraine.
02:20However, he criticized South Korea, saying that South Korea is still turning its back on
02:24Ukraine and not providing weapons support, and added that South Korea would be judged
02:27for it.
02:28Of course, former Ukrainian foreign minister Kuleba only served as foreign minister until 2024,
02:33and does not currently hold an official position in the Ukrainian government.
02:36However, Ukraine continues to put strong pressure on South Korea.
02:39The reason Ukraine desperately wants the Korean-made Chonggang-2 is because the issue of interceptor
02:43missile shortages in Ukraine's air defense network is becoming increasingly serious.
02:47European countries are providing various air defense systems and interceptor missiles,
02:50but as Russia continues to launch large numbers of drones, cruise missiles, and ballistic missiles,
02:54there are limits to stopping all these attacks.
02:56Even if there is an air defense system, it is difficult to operate it properly if Ukraine
02:59lacks interceptor missiles to launch, so securing new interceptor missiles has become a very
03:03important task for Ukraine.
03:04On top of this, the situation in the United States has also become a factor.
03:06As military operations have expanded in the Middle East, the United States has used a
03:10significant number of interceptor missiles to maintain air defense for itself and its
03:13allies, and in this process, the stockpile of air defense missiles held by the United
03:16States has also come under increased strain.
03:18As the amount that the United States can additionally support Ukraine with or export to other countries
03:22is affected, Ukraine's options have become even more limited.
03:25In this situation, Ukraine's interest in Chonggang-2 from Korea has also been influenced by the
03:29fact that Chonggang-2 is a proven medium-range air defense system that has already been exported
03:33overseas.
03:33In fact, the Ukrainian government has repeatedly requested air defense weapons support from
03:37Korea.
03:38Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the president of Ukraine, even made a public statement on August 9th
03:41expressing his intention to directly request support for air defense systems from Korea.
03:45Previously, the Ukrainian side pointed out that Korea has been supplying air defense
03:48systems like Chonggang to Middle Eastern countries such as the UAE.
03:50They raised the issue of why Ukraine was not receiving support.
03:53However, it was quite unusual for President Zelenskyy to directly mention Korea and talk
03:57about support for air defense systems.
03:59The Korean government reiterated its position that according to domestic law and existing
04:03policy, it does not provide direct weapons aid to regions where war is ongoing.
04:06Above all, there are already many countries waiting for the Chonggang, so even if it is sold
04:10to Ukraine, they would be lower on the priority list.
04:13But here, Ukraine is stepping up the pressure here.
04:15President Zelenskyy keeps bringing up the North Korea issue, linking South Korea's security
04:19to the war in Ukraine.
04:21The logic is that if North Korean troops gain real combat experience in Russia, that experience
04:26could affect security on the Korean peninsula in the future.
04:29They also claim that South Korean and Ukrainian diplomats are in contact over the issue of
04:32weapons support, but the South Korean government has distanced itself from such claims.
04:36Ukrainian media are also continuing to report that South Korea is not providing enough
04:39support to Ukraine.
04:40For Ukraine, as the shortage of air defense weapons becomes increasingly serious, there is a need
04:44to continue persuading and pressuring South Korea.
04:46For South Korea, its own air defense capabilities and domestic laws, and even its relationship
04:50with Russia must be considered, so the differences between the two countries are not easy to bridge.
04:54President Trump is demanding, through various channels, that South Korea expand its role
04:58in Middle Eastern issues.
04:59While our government is considering dispatching troops to the Strait of Hormuz, the US administration
05:03has stated that it is still waiting for South Korea to deploy resources to the
05:05Middle East, increasing the level of pressure.
05:07It seems that the United States expects South Korea to participate in Middle Eastern security
05:11in some way.
05:12In particular, the longer the government's review takes, the more likely it is that the
05:15US will repeatedly make this request.
05:17For South Korea, there is considerable pressure in the decision-making process as it must consider
05:21not only its alliance with the United States, but also domestic politics and military burdens.
05:24The problem is that it's hard to believe that US pressure on South Korea will ease just
05:28because the midterm elections are over.
05:30Currently, in US political circles, there are ongoing predictions that the Democratic Party
05:33will win the House in the midterm elections, while the Republican Party will maintain a majority
05:36in the Senate.
05:37If this happens, it's more likely that the way President Trump interacts with Congress
05:40and uses his authority will change rather than the overall scope of his powers being
05:44significantly reduced.
05:45If the Democratic Party takes control of the House, they will secure leadership of each
05:49standing committee, allowing them to expand hearings and investigations targeting the
05:52Trump administration.
05:53They can also demand the summoning of administration officials and close associates as witnesses.
05:57During the budget review and lawmaking process, checks on the administration's
06:00policies could become stronger, and there is also the possibility of pursuing additional
06:03investigations and impeachment proceedings against President Trump or his close associates.
06:07However, if the Republican Party maintains a majority in the Senate, it will be difficult
06:10for the Democratic Party to pass desired bills or directly block presidential appointments
06:13to the federal administration with control of only the House.
06:16President Trump also still retains a significant amount of authority that he can exercise regardless
06:20of the midterm election results.
06:21Even if the Democrats win both the Senate and the House, President Trump can directly determine
06:25the direction of the administration through executive orders, and he can exercise his
06:28presidential veto on bills passed by Congress.
06:30He can also continue to use the authority related to tariffs and sanctions that has been
06:33granted to the administration through existing laws.
06:35Especially in the fields of diplomacy and national security, including military command
06:38and summit diplomacy, the President has relatively broad discretion.
06:41So even if the Democrats strengthen their checks in Congress, it will be difficult
06:44to immediately restrict all foreign policies.
06:46Even if there are claims that the President's policy implementation is unconstitutional, it
06:50can take a considerable amount of time for a lawsuit to actually be filed in court and for
06:54the policy to be halted after going through a ruling.
06:56Therefore, even if the party pressures President Trump through hearings, investigations, or impeachment
07:00proceedings, the powers he already holds in administrative, diplomatic, and security areas do not immediately disappear.
07:05Therefore, you should not assume that President Trump's pressure will subside after the midterm elections are over.
07:09That's how powerful the presidential authority is in the United States.
07:12The reason why it is difficult for the Korean government to make decisions regarding Cheonggong too
07:15is because multiple countries and interests are intertwined at the same time.
07:18It's not an issue that can be judged based solely on the demands of the United States.
07:21Support for Ukraine, relations with Russia, and the state of military cooperation between
07:24Russia and North Korea all have to be considered together.
07:26In particular, if South Korea provides Cheonggong too to Ukraine, we also have to consider
07:29the possibility that Russia may interpret this as an expansion of South Korea's military
07:33planning.
07:33Given the ongoing military cooperation between Russia and North Korea, if South Korean air defense
07:37weapons are deployed on the Ukrainian battlefield, it's hard to rule out the possibility
07:40of diplomatic backlash or additional responses from Russia.
07:43On the other hand, considering the alliance with the United States, it can also be burdensome to keep
07:46refusing America's requests.
07:47In addition, maintaining the air defense capabilities of the South Korean military is also an important
07:50issue.
07:51Even if there are quantities available for export, if our military needs to secure the necessary
07:55capabilities and reserves first, we also have to consider the delivery schedules for countries
07:58with which we already have export contracts.
08:00Therefore, the issue of Cheonggong too goes beyond simply deciding whether or not to respond
08:03to the requests of a particular country.
08:05It has become a matter that requires simultaneous consideration of Korea's security, diplomatic relations,
08:08defense exports, and military readiness.
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