hankyoreh

Nov. 11.

Five days after South Korean President Park Geun-hye made comments about “unification diplomacy,” North Korea responded with criticism. At the same time, North Korea’s backlash was not very strong, suggesting that it was taking inter-Korean relations into account.

North Korean state media also gave short shrift to a congratulatory cable from Chinese President Xi Jinping, reflecting the awkward relations between Pyongyang and Beijing.

An article posted on Sep. 8 on Uriminzokkiri, the website of North Korea’s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, described Park’s comments about “unification diplomacy” as “disturbing remarks that are completely out of sync with political trends on the Korean peninsula today.”

“What need do the Korean people have to pathetically entrust the question of unification and of inter-Korean relations to outside forces? One inconsiderate word or one rude action would be enough to turn the agreement into a useless scrap of paper and to return inter-Korean relations to the point of conflict,” the article said.

Since North Korea’s response appeared in one of several articles that appear each day on Uriminzokkiri instead of through an official statement by a government organization, it appears to have intentionally muted its criticism.

In related news, North Korea’s Rodong Sinmun printed on page two of its Sep. 9 edition a congratulatory message sent by Chinese President Xi Jinping and other members of the Chinese leadership the day before. Sep. 9 is the 67th anniversary of the establishment of the North Korean government.

The location of President Xi’s message in the newspaper stood in marked contrast to congratulatory messages from Russian President Vladimir Putin and Cuban President Raul Castro, which ran on page one of the same paper.

“We want to work with North Korea in promoting the long-term, healthy, and stable development of relations between our two countries and always maintaining amicable and cooperative ties in order to actively contribute to the peace, stability, and development of the region,” President Xi’s message said.

Interestingly, the phrase about “promoting the long-term, healthy, and stable development of relations” has not been seen in prior congratulatory messages from China. Experts suggest that this was an indirect way of urging North Korea to refrain from the actions that the international community is concerned about, such as testing a nuclear weapon or launching a long-range rocket.

By Kim Ji-hoon, staff reporter

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