대통령의 조약 체결,비준권과 이에 대한 국회의 동의권 (헌법 제60조 제1항의 해석) = Presidential Power to Conclude Treaties and the National Assembly`s Veto under the Constitution

다국어 초록 (Multilingual Abstract)

The Constitution of the Republic of Korea grants the President power to conclude and ratify treaties, but, as a check and balance between the Executive and the Legislative branches, gives the National Assembly the right to consent to treaties of political importance or which have domestic legislative effects. Article 60 states that [t]he National Assembly shall have the right to consent to the conclusion and ratification of treaties pertaining to mutual assistance or mutual security; treaties concerning important international organizations; treaties of friendship, trade and navigation; treaties pertaining to any restriction on sovereignty; peace treaties; treaties which will burden the State or people with an important financial obligation; treaties related to legislative matters. Although this provision seems to draw a line between the kinds of treaties the National Assembly may or may not veto, some of the phrases in the Article such as important and sovereignty are open to interpretation, especially when the Executive is alleged to have concluded the treaties mentioned in Article 60 without the consent of the National Assembly. In such cases, the validity of the treaty will be in doubt and could even be judicially challenged through the legal avenues of Competence Dispute between the President and the National Assembly, Constitutional Complaint, or Constitutionality of Statutes. Moreover, the attitude of the Constitutional Court, inferred from precedents, appears to focus on whether a particular treaty meets the procedural requirements of Article 60 when dealing with the question of whether the particular treaty is compatible in its substance with the Constitution. This summary is intended to outline the competence of the President with respect to the conclusion of treaties and the categories of treaties over which the National Assembly has the right of consent. It is suggested that Article 60 should be interpreted somewhat narrowly so as not to hamper unnecessarily the Executive`s foreign policy powers or authority.