(LEAD) S Korea-US-FM talks

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By Oh Seok-min

SEOUL, Oct. 27 (Yonhap) -- Foreign Minister Cho Hyun said Tuesday he plans to meet with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio during his visit to the United States this week, with the two sides expected to discuss a visa issue involving a ruling party lawmaker, as well as other bilateral matters.

Cho made the remarks during a parliamentary audit of the foreign and unification ministries, responding to Rep. Hong Kee-won of the ruling Democratic Party (DP) who urged the government to formally convey its concerns to Washington over the U.S. visa issue involving Rep. Jung Chung-rae.

"I am scheduled to visit the U.S. the day after tomorrow and meet with Secretary Rubio. I will raise the issue then as well," Cho said.

Cho is scheduled to make a five-day visit to Atlanta starting Thursday to attend a Group of 20 (G20) foreign ministers' meeting hosted by Rubio. The foreign ministry has said Cho is also seeking bilateral meetings with counterparts from other major countries to discuss pending global and regional issues on the sidelines of the gathering.

Jung had been scheduled to join a parliamentary audit of South Korean diplomatic missions in the Americas earlier this month. But his U.S. visa application remained under review by the U.S. State Department, with no decision issued before his planned departure, prompting him to switch to the committee's Europe audit team.

The case has drawn criticism and concerns that it could be seen as another sign of strain in South Korea-U.S. relations, which have faced differences over economy and security issues.

"I had also raised concerns about the matter with the acting U.S. ambassador to South Korea on Oct. 8," Cho noted.

Cho, however, dismissed criticism that the Seoul-Washington alliance faces fraction as "utterly absurd," saying the two countries could have differences while maintaining a fundamentally sound relationship.

"I had breakfast with U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Michelle Steel just yesterday and brought up the word 'turbulence,'" Cho said. "I told her that when an airplane passes through turbulence, there is no problem as long as you fasten your seat belt tightly, and she agreed with me."

Steel described bilateral ties as being in a state of "turbulence" during a dialogue session hosted by the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea (AMCHAM) last week. She also said an alliance "can be weaker," and that Seoul and Washington "can move forward to be stronger. That is exactly what we are working on."

Seoul and Washington have faced friction over economic and security issues, including the implementation of an agreement reached at their summit last October, intelligence sharing on North Korea and Seoul's push to retake wartime operational control (OPCON) from Washington.

Responding to lawmakers' criticism of what they described as "humiliating diplomacy," Cho said, "Amid the serious realities of international politics, we have pursued pragmatic diplomacy, seeking to conduct diplomacy with confidence."

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