S. Korea suspends review on Google's map data transfer, asks for supplement

Seoul, Nov 11 (IANS) The South Korean government on Tuesday suspended its review of Google's request to export high-precision maps overseas, asking the U.S. tech giant to supplement its documentation.

During a review meeting, a government consultative body requested Google submit revised documents by Feb. 5, with the review process suspended until then, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, reports Yonhap news agency.

The government panel consists of several relevant ministries, including the defence, foreign affairs and science ministries.

It was the third review meeting on the issue since Google filed its request in February, seeking approval to transfer 1:5,000-scale high-precision map data to its data centres abroad.

The panel said Google had expressed its willingness to comply with South Korea's security requirements by removing coordinate data for the South Korean region from its maps, but such changes were not reflected in the submitted documents.

"Due to the discrepancy between Google's public statements and the submitted application, we were unable to deliberate on the matter," it said. "We therefore determined that clear confirmation and additional review are necessary."

The postponement of a final decision had been widely anticipated, as the issue remains sensitive between the South Korean and U.S. governments amid the delayed release of a joint fact sheet covering the outcome of their leaders' summit, held last month in South Korea's southeastern city of Gyeongju, as well as their recently concluded trade negotiations.

Currently, Google provides South Korean maps using publicly available 1:25,000-scale map data combined with aerial and satellite imagery. The United States has cited the issue as a key non-tariff barrier.

It was not known whether the data transfer issue was discussed during the bilateral summit between President Lee Jae Myung and U.S. President Donald Trump at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) gathering on October 29.

Google previously made similar requests for the transfer of high-precision map data overseas in 2007 and 2016, but Seoul had rejected them, citing national security concerns that may arise from the potential exposure of military bases and other sensitive facilities.

--IANS

na/