Excellent The Diplomat Article on South Korea, Japan, US, GSOMIA.

DongJoon Park at The Diplomat (paysite) has written an excellent article which corroborates 

much of Anonymous’ advice here, here and here. DongJoon Park’s article, of September 19, 2019, at https://thediplomat.com/2019/09/the-us-japan-and-south-korea-should-shelve-gsomia-for-now/ is titled:

“The US, Japan and South Korea Should Shelve GSOMIA (For Now)”. Parts include:

“Insisting that Seoul rejoin [the General Security of Military Information Agreement] GSOMIA may make South Korea more skeptical about Washington’s ability to arbitrate impartially.

...In Washington, experts are alarmed at Seoul’s decision to discontinue GSOMIA, arguing that it plays right into the hands of North Korea and China by weakening trilateral security cooperation between the United States and its two most important allies in East Asia. 

Many have pointed to historical animosity between [Seoul and Tokyo's] contrasting views over the “final and irreversible” nature of the 2015 agreement, and lack of mediation by the United States as key reasons behind this rapid downturn in bilateral relations. Even the threat posed by Pyongyang evidenced by its frequent missile tests in recent months appears to have done little to curb rising tensions.  

...Jennifer Lind has noted how the “crisis fits a predictable pattern” in which a progressive [Seoul] government tends to be “more dovish toward North Korea and more prickly toward Japan and the United States.”

...Seoul has also used its quarrel with Tokyo to signal its independence from Washington. High-ranking South Korean officials have openly retorted that Seoul would not seek mediation because they would then get slapped with a hefty bill in return.

...Though it may resemble similar instances from the past, what is unique about this present moment is U.S. President Donald Trump’s apparent eagerness to pursue negotiations with North Korea...Recent reports suggest that the United States and North Korea may meet again as early as late September. 

However unrealistic a breakthrough may seem to be, the fact that there is an ongoing dialogue of sorts between the United States and North Korea gives Seoul further leeway to maintain its current conciliatory stance vis-à-vis Pyongyang. 

Moreover, this unique set of circumstances has exposed the stark differences that lie in how Seoul and Tokyo perceive North Korea as a threat to their national security. North Korea’s missile and nuclear weapons programs often overshadow the fact that most South Koreans still believe unification between the two Koreas to be both desirable and feasible. And in this regard, Pyongyang will never be an adversary for Seoul in the same way it is for Japan. 

...Historically, calls for a stronger partnership between Seoul and Japan, and by extension trilateral cooperation including the United States, have been predicated on the notion that it is necessary to deter North Korean aggression, and for good reason.

 ...Much like it did a few years ago, the United States can and should play a positive role in facilitating reconciliation between its two allies through such processes. But to do so, it must not overly stress the importance of a vigorous trilateral relationship when it rests on such shaky ground. Insisting that Seoul rejoin GSOMIA, for example, will only exacerbate the situation by making South Korea more skeptical about Washington’s ability to arbitrate impartially...”

 DongJoon Park is a Ph.D. candidate at the Department of Government at Georgetown University.”
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Read the whole excellent THE DIPLOMAT (paysite) article, by DongJoon Park, HERE.