SEOUL, April 17 (UPI) -- South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun has dismissed reports of a possible break in the decades-old alliance between South Korea and the United States.
"There is no problem in relations between South Korea and the United States, although the bilateral relations have been changing a little recently compared with the past," Roh said in a meeting with a group of South Korean in Istanbul, Turkey.
Roh's remarks followed reports that relations between the two countries were strained when South Korea's presidential National Security Council announced opposition to a contingency plan that would allow the U.S. military to take command of South Korean troops if an emergency situation develops in North Korea, the Korea Times reported.
"The (South Korea-United States) alliance has been reshaped recently and, in the process, South Korea's voice has been heard more loudly," Roh said.
"The important thing in South Korea-U.S relations is coordinating the different views of order in Asia by South Koreans and Americans," he said.
"We continue to talk to Americans to that end and are making efforts to reach a consensus despite the fact we have conditions which should be different," he said.
