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As South Korean government authorities watched former U.S. President Bill Clinton visiting North Korea and negotiating the release of two U.S. journalists imprisoned there, they appeared troubled by the possibility of a reprise of the so-called “tongmibongnam” phenomenon, in which North Korea shuts out South Korea and solely negotiates with the U.S.

The perspective of the Cheong Wa Dae (the presidential office in South Korea or Blue House) on Clinton’s visit to North Korea is most evident in the way most officials are struggling to downplay its significance, and are making comments on how well South Korea and the U.S. have kept in communication and other inessential aspects of the visit. Meanwhile, a few officials are indicating concern over how this visit may prompt the necessity of a change in the tenor of South Korea’s policy regarding North Korea.

A Cheong Wa Dae official said Wednesday that it was inappropriate to interpret the visit as meaning that North Korea-U.S. relations have changed and are entering a new stage of dialogue. “If you write something like, Clinton’s mission to secure the release of the two U.S. journalists provided an occasion to shift North Korea-U.S. relations, it might turn out to be wrong later,” the official commented.

Another government official stressed that Clinton’s visit “is nothing more than a personal visit to North Korea.”

In some respects, analysts are saying the rush by South Korean officials to downplay the significance of Clinton’s visit is intended to keep step with the official position represented by the U.S. that the release of the journalists is seen by the Obama administration as separate from the North Korean nuclear issue. The general view, however, is that this position by the Lee administration is either designed to conceal the difficulty of the position it finds itself in or is nothing more than wishful thinking.

“The administration could thaw inter-Korean relations if it just makes up its mind to do so, so the administration’s claims about tongmibongnam just do not hold water,” said Hankyoreh Peace Research Institute head Kim Yeon-cheol. “These worries about tongmibongnam are basically just an expression of a guilty conscience,” Kim added.

Indeed, opportunities to resolve the issue of the Hyundai Asan employee, identified only by the surname Yu, who is currently being detained in North Korea, have presented themselves, but the government is said to be demonstrating no active determination to resolve the situation.

Furthermore, although the international situation surrounding the Korean Peninsula is shifting without South Korea’s leadership, the administration is emphasizing the “cooperation” with the U.S. on sharing information. “Former President Clinton’s plan to visit North Korea was confirmed a few days ago, and we received advance notice from the U.S. at the time,” a government official said. “We carried out continuous contact with the U.S. on this issue,” the official added.

Former Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun responded to this by saying that the U.S. “will not share much information in the future if South Korea maintains a hard line against North Korea.” Jeong justified this forecast by citing trouble that could be caused by potential dispute in the two countries’ different approaches and the possibility of information leaks.

In addition, there has been some talk about a missed opportunity. A few Cheong Wa Dae officials are saying that while President Lee had been set to announce future-oriented North Korea policy during his celebratory address for the Independence Day holiday on August 15, his timing has been thrown off by Clinton’s visit to North Korea. Although, it had been reported that as of late July the Cheong Wa Dae had allotted a considerable portion of Lee’s address to appeals for “citizen unity” and that only “passing” references were to be made on North Korea policy. As a way of reconciling the contradictory information coming from the Cheong Wa Dae, observers are saying that President Lee can now use Clinton’s visit as an excuse for remaining staunch in his North Korea policy.

Of course, there are also government officials who are not speaking out publicly, but support the view that the tenor of North Korea policy needs to take a more future-oriented direction. These officials agree that the August 15 address represents a realizable opportunity.

“If you look at the history of North Korea-U.S. relations, once things get set in motion, they advance rapidly,” Jeong noted. “At the very least, South Korea needs to keep inter-Korean relations in step with North Korea-U.S. relations, or move a half step ahead,” he advised.

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