hankyoreh

Members of the South Korean Committee for Implementing the June 15 Joint Statement hold a demonstration at Gwanghwamun Square in central Seoul

North Korea is urging the Moon Jae-in administration declare its commitment to implementing the June 15 Joint Declaration of 2000 and the October 4 Declaration of 2007.

It also called on Seoul to address fundamental issues in the deeply strained relationship between the two sides before attempting to resume humanitarian aid and private exchange. Many are questioning the aims of Pyongyang’s message, which comes as joint events by South, North, and overseas Koreans are being planned for the first time in nine years ahead of the June 15 Declaration‘s 17th anniversary.

The Rodong Sinmun, the official newspaper of the Workers’ Party of [North] Korea, published a “political analysis” titled “We Must Respect and Implement the North-South Declarations” on June 6.

“The change in administrations in South Korea does not mean inter-Korean relations will improve all by themselves,” said the analysis, which was attributed to an individual contributor.

The piece went on to say the main question was “whether [Seoul] is committed or not to respecting and implementing the June 15 Joint Declaration and October 4 Declaration.”

The newspaper made reference to exchange and collaboration efforts by private South Korean groups, which were resumed under the Moon administration after being stymied under preceding conservative governments.

“Resuming [private exchange] is necessary for restoring North-South relations, which are currently in a state of total shutdown,” the piece said.

But it went on to say inter-Korean relations “cannot be seen as improving simply because some humanitarian aid and private exchange is permitted.”

“The crucial thing is resolving the root causes of the breakdown in North-South relations,” it stressed.

Positing attitudes and positions on the two declarations as a basic yardstick for inter-Korean relations, the piece declared that there could be “no substitute for North-South declarations” in resolving issues between the two sides.

Inje University professor Kim Yeon-cheol said the statement “appears to be North Korea’s way of communicating to the Moon Jae-in administration that it wants exchange after a proper orientation has been established in its North Korea policy.”

University of North Korean Studies professor Yang Moo-jin said the message “seems to be that the Moon Jae-in administration should show its sincerity and declare its commitment to enforcing the June 15 Joint Declaration and October 4 Declaration at the highest level instead of trying to set itself apart from the Lee Myung-bak [2008-13] and Park Geun-hye [2013-16] administrations with support for private exchange at a basic level.”

“North Korea could be demanding a [statement of] position on resuming the Kaesong Industrial Complex and tourism at Mt. Keumgang as a sincere measure to gauge the new administration’s level of commitment.”

By Kim Ji-eun, staff reporter

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