S Korea probes mishandling of military pact with Japan

South Korea has launched a government-wide investigation into the mishandling of a planned military pact with Japan, a senior official said Wednesday, amid mounting accusations that the government tried to push the pact without enough public support. The signing of the military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan was postponed at the last minute last Friday, due to a strong political outcry in South Korea, where historically rooted anti-Japanese sentiment is still strong, according to South Korea's news agency (Yonhap). Fueling the political outcry was the South Korean Cabinet's secretive approval of the pact on June 26. Recriminations have run high among the presidential office, and foreign and defense ministries over who should be held responsible for keeping the passage secret, prompting the saga to deteriorate into finger-pointing. "A government-wide probe is underway with regard to the matter" of the secretive endorsement at the Cabinet meeting, the foreign ministry official said on the condition of anonymity. The probe is being led by the presidential office, the official said, adding, "Depending on the result of the probe, there could be someone who will be held accountable." Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan met with senior lawmakers of both the ruling and opposition parties to try to seek parliamentary support for the pact, the official said. With South Korea heading for a presidential election in December, prospects for the signing of the pact are uncertain. The ruling Saenuri Party has called on the government of President Lee, whose term ends next February, to let his successor handle the signing, while opposition parties have demanded Lee scrap the pact. It remains unclear whether South Korea could formally sign the pact with Japan this year. "Our stance is that we will press head with the signing of the pact with Japan only after we fully make efforts to win support from the National Assembly," the official said. President Lee scolded his Cabinet on Monday for the mishandling of the pact with Japan, while the foreign minister apologized to the nation for pursuing the pact without making enough efforts to win people's support for the agreement.