hankyoreh

Myanmar

By Park Hyun, Washington correspondent and Park Byong-su, staff reporter

On a Nov. 20 visit to Myanmar, US President Barack Obama sent a message to North Korea by urging the North to follow in Myanmar’s footsteps. This is the US’s first communication aimed at North Korea since that country launched its Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite in April. As these remarks come on the heels of Obama’s reelection, changes in the US’s North Korea policy could be next, depending on how the North responds to the comments.

In a message delivered at Yangon University, Obama said, “We don’t need to be defined by the prisons of the past; We need to look forward to the future. To the leadership of North Korea, I have offered a choice; let go of your nuclear weapons and choose the path of peace and progress. If you do, you will find an extended hand from the United States of America.”

Ostensibly, these remarks do not seem to differ greatly from previous positions in that they urge North Korea to abandon its nuclear program before all else. However, it can be seen as a move away from previous stances given that President Obama hardly commented on North Korea in official appearances at all during his first four years, a manifestation of the administration’s “strategic ignorance” policy toward the North following the launch of Kwangmyongsong-3.

In particular, the statement, “We don’t need to be defined by the prisons of the past,” may be profound in meaning depending on how it is interpreted. Obama had pronounced early in his first term a policy to have direct dialogues with North Korea, but this changed after the North carried out a nuclear test. North Korea’s agreement on Feb. 29 of this year to suspend its nuclear program came to naught with the subsequent launch of the Kwangmyongsong-3 satellite. Some analysts interpret Obama’s remarks as an overture for a fresh start, putting the past behind the two countries.

“Commenting on North Korea during his visit to Myanmar is seen as a sign of his clear intentions to make sure North Korea takes notice. I think the message meant if North Korea stops its provocations and is willing to negotiate denuclearization, the US is ready to extend a warm hand,” a South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade official said

That Obama’s remarks were made just after his reelection is also drawing attention. As high-ranking US foreign affairs officials and those in the national security sector have repeatedly stressed that Asia is the main focus of Obama’s second term foreign policy, the North Korean nuclear issue cannot be avoided, as it is a key factor in tensions throughout East Asia.

In addition, the US is in a situation where it must learn the current state of uranium enrichment facilities that North Korea unveiled in 2010. For North Korea’s part, improvement of relations with Washington is more important than anything else for economic development, which is necessary for the stabilization of Kim Jong-un regime. As such, Obama’s remarks may trigger conversations between the US and North Korea.

Experts are divided on the outlook of the US-North Korea relations. Park Han-sik, professor of politics at University of Georgia said, “President Obama is well aware of the history of the US and North Korea’s negotiations,” predicting that there is possibility that Obama can bring about changes in North Korea policy.

Scott Snyder, director of the Program on US-Korea Policy of the Council on Foreign Relations, showed a cautious position by saying that the path of Myanmar is different from North Korea’s because Myanmar wasn’t clinging to a nuclear program, and it would not be easy for the Kim Jong-un regime to launch reforms due to the possible unrest that reform measures could cause.

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