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The North Korean flag flies at a guard post on the bank of the Imjin River as seen from Paju, Gyeonggi Province, near the border, on May 10. (Yonhap News)

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol shared the focus for his future foreign policy efforts in his inaugural address Tuesday, announcing plans to pursue “sustainable peace” rather than “vulnerable peace” based on the temporary avoidance of war.

On the issue of North Korea’s nuclear program, he shared a more or less identical solution to the Lee Myung-bak administration’s “Vision 3000: Denuclearization and Openness” approach with his declaration of plans to provide support that would be contingent on denuclearization.

In his address, Yoon said, “While North Korea's nuclear weapon programs are a threat not only to our security and that of Northeast Asia, the door to dialogue will remain open so that we can peacefully resolve this threat.”

“If North Korea genuinely embarks on a process to complete denuclearization, we are prepared to cooperate with the international community to present an audacious plan that will vastly strengthen North Korea’s economy and improve the quality of life for its people,” he said.

Yoon’s “solution” to the North Korean nuclear issue was strongly reminiscent of the Lee administration’s Vision 3000, which involved promises of economic assistance to the North on the condition that it give up its nuclear program.

In his own inaugural address in 2008, Lee also announced that “new horizons will open up for inter-Korean cooperation if North Korea abandons its nuclear weapons and chooses the path of openness.” He further announced plans at the time to “work with the international community to help increase the [average] income for North Korean residents to US$3,000 within 10 years.”

As part of Yoon’s new presidential office, the top two positions in the National Security Office will be held by Korea University professor Kim Sung-han and Sungkyunkwan University professor Kim Tae-hyo — both of whom served as key members of the foreign affairs and national security lineup under Lee Myung-bak.

While Vision 3000 involved tradeoffs in security and economic terms, the lack of progress with the “denuclearization” aspect meant that neither the “openness” nor the “3000” aspects came to pass either. Yoon now finds himself facing a situation where North Korea is unlikely to pursue denuclearization based on promises of economic assistance alone, without substantive changes to the national security environment.

Also noteworthy in Yoon’s address was his reference to the need to “pursue sustainable peace that brings freedom and prosperity, rather than vulnerable peace based on the temporary avoidance of war.”

“Vulnerable peace” was a phrase often used by Yoon on the campaign trail to criticize the “Korean Peninsula peace process” under predecessor Moon Jae-in’s administration. Analysts saw its use as signaling the new administration’s plans to adhere to a harder line on Pyongyang.

Yoon did not share a vision for improving relations with the North. This stands in contrast to Moon, whose election took place when the North Korean nuclear crisis was at a fever pitch and who took office immediately without any transition period.

In his inaugural address, Moon signaled his commitment to pursuing an inter-Korean summit. “I remain committed to doing all I can for the settlement of peace on the Korean Peninsula,” he said at the time, adding that he would “even go to Pyongyang under the right circumstances.”

Moon’s predecessor Park Geun-hye similarly said that she planned to “lay the groundwork for an era of unification where all Koreans can lead more prosperous and freer lives and where their dreams can come true.”

In terms of his foreign policy focus, Yoon stressed that South Korea would be a “country that fulfills its responsibilities and roles in the international community.” His remarks fell along similar lines to his transition committee’s reference on May 3 to making South Korea a “core global power that contributes to freedom, peace, and prosperity” — while also bearing similarities to the Joe Biden administration’s emphasis on “value-based diplomacy” in the US.

Yoon stressed that South Korea would “need to take on a greater role befitting [its] stature as a global leader in actively supporting and championing universal global norms based on the values of freedom and human rights.”

Analysts read his references to value-oriented diplomacy as having an underlying emphasis on strengthening South Korea’s alliance with the US and trilateral cooperation with the US and Japan, while distancing it from China and Russia. They also hinted at the possibility that human rights issues would be a key standard in dealing with North Korea.

By Jung In-hwan, staff reporter

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