hankyoreh

Unification Minister

By Kang Tae-ho, senior staff writer

Unification Minister Ryoo Kihl-jae said on July 11 that the Mt. Keumgang tourism venture with North Korea would only be resumed after South and North first dealt with the Kaesong Industrial Complex situation.

His remarks answered the question of why Seoul agreed to only working-level talks toward reunions between separated families after North Korea’s sudden proposal of talks on both issues the previous day.

Speaking at a North Korea Policy Forum breakfast at the 63 Building in Seoul’s Yeouido neighborhood, Ryoo said, “Since we’re having talks between governments over resuming operations at the Kaesong Industrial Complex, I sent [North Korea] a message basically saying, ‘Wouldn’t it be better to make progress on this issue first? That way we can proceed naturally into resolving the Mt. Keumgang situation.’”

The day before, Unification Ministry spokesman Kim Hyung-suk called the Kaesong situation “a touchstone for inter-Korean interchange and cooperation.” Kim also stressed that the step-by-step approach to the Kaesong and Mt. Keumgang issues was a basic part of the Park Geun-hye administration’s trust-building process on the peninsula.

“At the moment, there isn’t even a basic level of trust in inter-Korean relations,” he said. “The government’s plan is to work calmly, resolving the Kaesong issue first and then going one step at a time to build trust in our relationship.”

Seoul’s approach can be interpreted in two ways. One is that it could not agree to resume negotiations on Mt. Keumgang tours because there still has not been an apology from North Korea for the 2008 shooting death of a South Korean tourist, or measures put in place to prevent similar incidents.

Because similar issues are going on with Kaesong, a solution there could lead naturally to one for Mt. Keumgang. In either case, North Korea would have to state a definite position about preventive measures.

The other interpretation is that Seoul’s approach is a sign of not believing North Korea’s offers for dialogue and economic cooperation because of a lack of trust. In other words, North Korea’s proposals may not be genuine, but tactical - made under pressure from Beijing - or intended as a stepping-stone to dialogue with Washington.

But the South Korean government’s reasoning is also weak in some regards. Resuming the Mt. Keumgang tourism project was part of the official agenda for minister-level talks between South and North that were proposed by North Korea on June 6, but fell through. Seoul has maintained that it is keeping the door open for dialogue, but it has also been reluctant to agree to offers actually made by Pyongyang - or made its participation conditional. South Korean conservatives have long been skeptical about the tourism venture, which they contend is simply a way for North Korea to rake in foreign currency without doing anything. From this perspective, South Korea has no reason to hurry.

It is still impossible to predict the chances of resuming operations at Kaesong. Ryoo said he was “not going to lose sleep” over the matter, suggesting he would not be troubled if the shutdown continues into the long term. The chances are strong that, as Kim said, the Kaesong issue will truly be a touchstone for inter-Korean relations under the Park administration. A Blue House official also said getting the complex running “isn’t going to be easy.” And North Korea is very likely to view any statement of regret or preventive measures it has to go through with as capitulation.

But for the businessmen from Kaesong Complex tenant companies, time is of the essence. Some of them may not be able to operate in the complex at all if they have to spend all summer collecting their materials and checking out facilities. And if North Korea insists on tying reunions to the Mt. Keumgang tourism project, the plans could collapse over a “battle for pride,” as they did with last month’s talks.

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