Smith has indicated his serious concern on the amendment of the Development of Inter-Korean Relations Act in South Korea which passed the South Korean National Assembly on December 14, 2020. It penalizes activists who send anti-North Korean material across the border as balloon propaganda. It was passed by the super-majority of the ruling party of President Moon Jae-in who is keen to improve cross-border ties. Smith stated that "While I would hope that members of Korea’s Democratic Party would see how damaging this proposed legislation is to democratic principles and human rights, and thus reverse course, in the event that they pass such a law, I call upon our State Department to critically reevaluate the Republic of Korea’s commitment to democratic values in its annual human rights report, as well as in its report on international religious freedom. It may very well be that we will see South Korea put on a watch list, which would be a very sad development indeed."