hankyoreh

President Moon Jae-in presides over a meeting of the National Security Council

President Moon Jae-in’s remarks in a June 22 interview with Reuters, in which he demanded a “more active role from China in deterring North Korea’s nuclear and missile development,” were both a continuation of his emphasis on Beijing’s rule during his presidential campaign and an apparent attempt to keep step with US President Donald Trump’s recent claims that China’s efforts at exerting influence on North Korea had failed.

While he acknowledged China’s efforts to stop additional provocations from Pyongyang, Moon also noted the failure to produce concrete results to date and stressed the need for more proactive measures.

Moon’s position was also evident in his remarks referring to China as “North Korea’s only ally and . . . the country that provides the most economic assistance to North Korea.”

“Without the assistance of China, sanctions won't be effective at all,” he said.

At the same time, he made it clear that he would be demanding China relax its own recent sanctions against South Korean businesses over the THAAD deployment.

Stating that he hoped to meet with Chinese President Xi Jinping at next month’s G-20 summit, Moon said, “If I have the chance to meet President Xi, I will ask for him to lift these measures [against South Korean businesses]. This is the agenda that we cannot evade.”

Moon also showed a heightened sense of alarm over the extent of North Korea’s nuclear and missile development, predicting it could achieve the technology for a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile capable of striking the mainland US “in the not too distant future.”

The remarks stood in sharp contrast to his comments in a CBS interview two days earlier, where he dismissed the North Korean nuclear program as a “bluff.”

At the same time, Moon insisted that “strong” sanctions should be imposed if North Korea attempts an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) test launch or sixth nuclear test.

Moon’s interview is also drawing attention for its open voicing of concerns about recent developments with the Japanese government. Moon described Japan as an important partner in resolving the North Korean nuclear issue, but said he was worried about its military armament and refusal to acknowledge historical issues.

“If Japan were to show its strong resolve in looking back on its past history and sending a message that such actions will never happen again . . . then I believe that this will go a long way in further developing its relations with not only Korea but also with many other Asian nations,” he said, in a message that sounded a note of indirect pressure on Tokyo. Moon’s remarks appeared to be aimed toward holding renegotiations of the Dec. 2015 government agreement on the comfort women issue, as he pledged during his presidential campaign.

By Lee Se-young, staff reporter

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