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Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon speaks to the 1st South Korea-Chinese Senior Leader Academy at the Seoul Hilton Hotel on Oct. 18

Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon said on Oct. 18 that the possibility of North Korea abandoning its nuclear weapons is “extremely low, to be fair.” Cho’s message appeared aimed at stressing the difficulty of a resolution to the nuclear issue.

Cho’s remarks came during a talk at the first South Korea-China Senior Leader Academy held that morning, an event organized by the Chinese Embassy in Seoul.

“It is euphemistic to say that it is ‘extremely low,’” he continued, explaining that Pyongyang “views nuclear weapons as its lifeline to such an extent that it would not be wrong to say there is effectively no chance right now of North Korea giving up its nuclear weapons.”

“North Korea claims that what is threatening their lives and survival is the hostile policy of the US. In that respect, the North’s position is that they need to sit down with the US and convince it to give up its policy of hostility that is threatening their lives, and then the issue of nuclear weapons can be brought up,” Cho said. In Cho’s view, North Korea insists that the US must abolish its policy of hostility before it is willing to negotiate on its nuclear program.

The so-called military option against North Korea, Cho said, “could have awful consequences that we cannot endure, so we must eliminate solutions to the North Korean nuclear issue based on military measures.” Cho was also dismissive of the support certain members of the opposition party have given to redeploying tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea.

“Even now, we’re facing a number of difficulties over the THAAD deployment, and we could face the same problems if we announce [the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons] somewhere. Practically speaking, I don’t that’s a feasible option,” he said.

By Jung In-hwan, staff reporter

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