[Editorial] New president must prioritize steps toward peace and dialogue with North Korea

Posted on : 2017-05-07 08:23 KST Modified on : 2017-05-07 08:23 KST
North Korean leader observing naval units in the West (Yellow) Sea
North Korean leader observing naval units in the West (Yellow) Sea

The nine years of the Lee Myung-bak (2008-13) and Park Geun-hye (2013-17) administrations saw inter-Korean relations hurtling toward catastrophe with the closure of Mt. Keumgang for tourism, the shutdown of the Kaesong Industrial Complex, and several nuclear tests by North Korea. The US did not actively intervene over this period, following a policy of “strategic patience.” Whoever is elected president on May 9 will immediately be faced with the weighty task of turning back this tide. The issues on the Korean Peninsula require sophisticated solutions, with South Korea playing a pivotal role in its relations with the US, China, and the other countries involved. Whatever happens, the priority must also be on a peaceful situation. That’s why it’s so urgent for the new president to think of proactive and concrete ways of getting Pyongyang to participate in dialogue, such as sending special envoys to the North.

From that standpoint, the pledges for the main candidates fall broadly into two camps: dialogue and negotiation for liberal Minjoo Party candidate Moon Jae-in and left-wing Justice Party candidate Shim Sang-jung, pressure and sanctions from conservatives Liberty Korea Party candidate Hong Joon-pyo and Bareun Party candidate Yoo Seong-min. Moderate People’s Party candidate Ahn Cheol-soo is seen as falling somewhere in the middle. Moon has said he plans to adopt an active approach of bilateral and multilateral talks and sign a peace agreement for the Korean Peninsula if North Korea denuclearizes. There’s nothing really wrong with the goals or substance, but what isn’t clear is what his first step is going to be. Shim has put a bit more emphasis on dialogue, whether it’s holding four-party talks simultaneously with the Six-Party Talks on the nuclear issue or holding a meeting of four leaders toward a declaration of peace on the peninsula. Whereas Moon has been a bit cautious on the reopening of the Kaesong Complex and resumption of tourism at Mt. Keumgang, Shim has made clear pledges to restart both of them.

On the surface, Ahn’s ideas aren’t much different from Moon’s and Shim’s, including resumption of the Six-Party talks and pursuing four-party talks to sign a peace agreement. But Ahn has also set himself apart from Moon and Shim with his forceful declarations about continuing with sanctions. He has also said he plans to resume humanitarian aid and cultural, academic, religious, and athletic exchanges on the conditions of “denuclearization and peace.” In placing political conditions on humanitarian aid, his approach is similar to the Lee Myung-bak administrations “Vision 3000” and the Park Geun-hye administration’s insistence on denuclearization first. Meanwhile, Hong and Yoo have both pledged to redeploy tactical nuclear weapons - something that is neither desirable nor realistic. Doing so could leave us in a situation where we’ve not only sacrificed our grounds for seeking North Korea’s denuclearization, but also irreversibly ruined ties with China. It’s also a pledge that doesn’t take into account at all the intentions of the US, which holds authority to decide on the deployment of nuclear weapons. As a solution, it’s likely to be condemned by the international community as anachronistic.

On May 4, the US House of Representatives overwhelming passed the Korean Interdiction and Modernization of Sanctions Act. But it’s clear that the ultimate goal of the Donald Trump administration’s new “maximum pressure and engagement” policy on North Korea is dialogue. For Seoul to emphasize a military solution at a time like this could not only rule it out of a leading role in peninsula issues, but ultimately become a stumbling block. Amid this trend of shifting international relations, the new president is going to need to make a priority of the Korean people’s peace and safety and search for concrete ways to get inter-Korean dialogue happening again.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

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