South Korea salvages military pact with Japan

South Korea decided Friday against scrapping a critical military intelligence-sharing pact with Japan, in a dramatic 11th-hour U-turn that came as a relief to the United States.

The pact was due to expire at midnight amid a sharp deterioration in ties between the two democracies and market economies that has alarmed Washington as it seeks to curb the threat from nuclear-armed North Korea.

But after a flurry of last-ditch diplomacy, Seoul announced it would "conditionally" suspend the expiry of the agreement with just six hours left on the clock.

Kim You-geun, a national security official at Seoul's presidential Blue House, confirmed the accord, known as GSOMIA, would not be allowed to lapse at midnight. "The Japanese government has expressed their understanding," he said.

He warned, however, that the pact could still "be terminated at any time".

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said three-way co-ordination between Tokyo, Seoul and Washington was "extremely important," adding that he believed South Korea had taken their decision from a "strategic point of view." But Defence Minister Taro Kono stressed that it was a temporary measure and urged Seoul to extend the pact "in a firm manner."