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Park Jin, President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s pick for foreign minister, takes questions from lawmakers during his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly on May 2. (Yonhap News)

President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s nominee for foreign minister, Park Jin, issued cautious statements regarding the possibility of deploying additional THAAD batteries on South Korean soil during his confirmation hearing Monday.

The hearing, which was held by the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, gave lawmakers from other parties an opportunity to gain clarity on the incoming administration’s foreign policy direction.

When asked about what exactly President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol meant when he called for the additional deployment of THAAD through a social media post in late January, Park explained that the comment was made “to reinforce the air defense network in the metropolitan area in the face of various missile threats from North Korea.”

When asked whether he would approve of the additional deployment, he declined to comment, saying that “in-depth discussions will be held to decide on what conclusions should be drawn.”

Regarding the Moon Jae-in administration's so-called “Three Noes” policy on THAAD, which includes no additional THAAD deployments, no participation in the US-led strategic missile defense system, and no trilateral military alliance with the US and Japan, Park said there was nothing to “withdraw” from since it was not an official agreement. The People Power Party has previously criticized the policy as “diplomacy submissive to China.”

When lawmaker Lee Tae-gyu of the People’s Party said he “doesn’t see a foreign policy vision” for Yoon’s administration, Park responded by saying that Yoon’s foreign policy is to create a country that contributes to “peace, freedom, and prosperity” while being centered around building an iron-clad South Korea-US alliance.

When pressed by Kim Young-joo, Democratic Party lawmaker, on whether he thought the South Korea-US alliance had “collapsed” under the Moon administration, Park answered that he was simply emphasizing the need to strengthen the alliance, saying he would use the word “strengthen” instead of “rebuilding.”

Regarding the upcoming visit of US President Joe Biden scheduled for May 20, he said, "We will intensively discuss ways to strengthen the industrial supply chain and new changes in the Indo-Pacific region [along with the North Korean nuclear issue].”

On the possibility of South Korea joining the Quad, a four-member body aimed at keeping China in check, Park said that so far there had been no formal invitation issued by the US.

“We will be able to cooperate while expanding and strengthening Korea's role and contribution [in the Quad],” Park said.

However, Park did make a clear statement regarding the possible deployment of tactical nuclear weapons on South Korean soil, which has been called for by various figures in the People Power Party. “We are not currently discussing this [with the US],” Park said on the issue.

Allegations regarding Park’s eldest son were also discussed during the hearing. Park’s son worked for Nsus Group, a Canada-based company, for three years until this past April. The Democratic Party has attacked the company for operating an online gambling site, which is illegal in South Korea.

Park responded by saying that, regardless of whether the accusations were true, he was “the only one to blame” for his family’s affairs having caused controversy.

Meanwhile, the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee will be holding the confirmation hearing of Kwon Young-se, whom Yoon tapped to lead the Ministry of Unification, on May 12, two days after the new administration takes power.

By Jung In-hwan, staff reporter

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