The South Korean government and the opposition parties are on rare common ground, as they continue to oppose -- citing national security concerns -- Google’s attempt to export South Korea’s map data for popular augmented reality smartphone game “Pokemon Go.”

The main opposition The Minjoo Party of Korea and second-biggest People’s Party last week urged the government to deny the company permission to store detailed map information at its global data center located outside the country.

The government has refused to ease restrictions on the mapping service unless Google censors sensitive installations. Relevant agencies meet with the Internet giant on Aug. 12.

“If the government does a special favor (to Google), it will be violating its own laws and principles,” said Rep. Shin Cheol-yeon of the People’s Party on Aug 4. The opposition parties are planning to raise their objections to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, which overseas mapping policy.

The debate over map data has come to the fore as smartphone users in South Korea are unable to play “Pokemon Go,” a GPS-based augmented reality game that invites users to roam the streets to capture virtual monsters.

Though the game’s developer and distributor Niantic, a spin-off from Google’s parent Alphabet, has yet to specify the reasons for not making the game available here, industry watchers speculate it is because full-fledged services of Google Maps are not available.

South Korea is one of the few places in the world where the mapping service is restricted. Google claims it needs to export Korea’s map information to offer signature functions such as 3-D maps, walking and driving directions and car navigation features.

But the government refuted the argument, suggesting the GPS-based mobile game does not require detailed geographic information to operate properly. “The launch of ‘Pokemon Go’ in South Korea has nothing to do with Google’s request for map data,” an official said.

According to South Korean law related to management of map data, geographic information is prohibited from being released overseas without the authorization of the president and transport minister, or a consensus among heads of government agencies dealing with security issues.

The exception clause was included in 2014 as part of President Park Geun-hye’s deregulation initiative aimed at improving innovation in business. Encouraged by the amendment, Google last month made a request to the Transport Ministry to access the country’s map information.

But the outcome of the negotiations -- with a decision expected to be announced after the meeting on Aug. 12 -- remains to be seen, as the government has offered a counterproposal that bothers Google: removal of sensitive facilities in South Korea from the company’s global map images.

The government has insisted images of key facilities, such as the presidential office and military units, be either blurred or camouflaged because the nation is still technically at war with North Korea and needs to protect itself from potential security threats.

Google, however, has said South Korea cannot be treated differently from other nations. The Internet company noted that the Google Maps’ geographic images are virtually the same in all nations and that changing the system in favor of South Korea would pose difficulties.

Google’s domestic competitors have mostly criticized the move. Lee Hae-jin, chairman of South Korea’s leading search engine Naver, urged Google to abide by Korean law, comparing the U.S. company’s request to an attempt to engage in “unfair” business practices.

“The point is to ask (Google) to place its server in South Korea, not to block its service altogether,” said the chairman at a press conference on July 15. “Google’s technology is advanced enough to run its server here. Just asking the government to change the law doesn’t make sense when they failed to meet their obligations as a business firm,” he said.

Google Maps divides up the world into rhombus-shaped cells. Under this system, the northeastern tip of South Korea -- including Sokcho and Ulleungdo Island -- are categorized as part of North Korean territory, allowing “Pokemon Go” to be played there.

Eager to play the game, South Korean Pokemon fans and game enthusiasts have flocked to Sokcho since July. If the game officially launches in Japan, South Koreans may be able to access the service in the southeastern city of Busan as well, industry watchers said.

By Yeo Jun-suk (jasonyeo@heraldcorp.com)