Tag: Moon Jae-in

Despite all the outreach President Moon did over the past five years to North Korea, the only that has changed is that North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs are more dangerous than ever:

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said in a recent letter to President Moon Jae-in that inter-Korean relations can improve as much as one wants if both sides make sincere efforts, Cheong Wa Dae said Friday.

Kim sent the letter Thursday in response to a farewell letter that Moon sent the previous day as he prepared to leave office after a five-year term that included three summit meetings with Kim and two summits between Kim and then U.S. President Donald Trump.

In the letter, Moon called on Kim to swiftly resume talks with the United States and make efforts for dialogue with South Korea’s incoming government of President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol, presidential spokesperson Park Kyung-mee told reporters.

“Holding the hands of Chairman Kim, I took one clear step that would change the fate of the Korean Peninsula,” Moon said in the letter, according to Park. “The era of confrontation should be overcome with dialogue.”

In the response letter, Kim said the two sides made “indelible achievements.”

“Though much is left desired, my belief remains unchanged that if the South and the North pour sincerity in based on efforts made so far, inter-Korean relations can move forward as much as one wants,” Kim was quoted as saying in the letter.

Kim thanked Moon for his peace efforts, saying he will continue to respect Moon after his retirement.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

It didn’t take long for the Moon administration to begin to walk back their supposed cooperation with incoming President-Elect Yoon to move the presidential office to the Defense Ministry building:

Whether President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol will be able to relocate the presidential office in time for his May 10 inauguration remains a question even though President Moon Jae-in has promised to look into the matter and render cooperation.

Moon’s remark, made during a dinner meeting with Yoon on Monday, was seen as a step forward for Yoon, because Moon’s office had effectively expressed opposition earlier, saying the envisioned relocation could leave a security vacuum, as it also involves moving the defense ministry in a short period of time.

Moon’s cooperation is key, because the Cabinet should approve a reserve government fund for the plan.

Despite the positive words from Moon, the prospect of finishing the relocation by May 10 as planned is uncertain, as Moon’s offer of cooperation is considered conditional on a “careful” review of the relocation plan. (……)

After initial reports of Moon’s willingness to cooperate on the relocation plan, Cheong Wa Dae insiders cautioned against distorting the president’s latest remarks, saying the emphasis was on a “careful” review of the plan.

Some even claimed there was no change in Moon’s stance, as he had left open the possibility of rejecting the budget proposal for the relocation if it failed to resolve his concerns about leaving a security vacuum.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it is going to be a surprise if this move happens on the timeframe that the incoming Yoon administration is pushing for.

President Moon has quickly changed his mind about helping the Yoon administration move the Presidential office:

President Moon Jae-in said he will “cooperate” with President-elect Yoon Suk-yeol’s plan to relocate the presidential office, Monday, during their first meeting that came 19 days after the presidential election on March 9. 

“President Moon said the decision over the location of the presidential office is fully up to the incoming government,” Yoon’s Chief of Staff Rep. Chang Je-won said during a press briefing held after the meeting. “As an outgoing president, he said he will thoroughly look into the budget related to the relocation plan and cooperate with the president-elect.”

His remarks came days after the two sides had clashed over Yoon’s bid to set up a new presidential office at the defense ministry compound in Seoul’s Yongsan District, and begin his presidency there. Moon had earlier dismissed Yoon’s proposal to finance his presidential office relocation plan from the state reserve fund.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

President Moon needs to be telling the Kim regime there is no need for confrontation and not the rest of us because they are the ones that have shelled a civilian island, sunk the Cheonan with a torpedo, kidnapped Korean citizens, and the list goes on and on:

President Moon Jae-in said that there is “no reason for confrontation” between the two Koreas Tuesday, a day after the restoring of cross-border hotlines, stressing the importance of co-prosperity with the North.    
   
“From the perspective of overseas Koreans, a Korea divided in two, into the South and the North, must be a sad reality,” said Moon, speaking at a ceremony marking 15th World Korean Day. “But we have no reason for confrontation. Competition over political systems and comparison of national power has long since become meaningless.”  
   
The two Koreas restored cross-border communication lines Monday, 55 days after Pyongyang suspended them to protest a military exercise, taken by the South as a positive signal to deescalate tensions and improve inter-Korean relations.    
   
“Now, it is even more important to prosper together,” continued Moon. “Even if unification takes time, the South and North can cooperate and get along well with each other.”   

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link, but as I have said before with Moon presidency ending soon the Kim regime knows that their window of opportunity to get sanctions dropped is shrinking. Thus they are being nice to President Moon while at the same time trying to pressure the Biden administration to deal with them by executing missile tests. I would expect the provocations to escalate if the Kim regime feels they are not making progress towards an agreement with the Biden administration.

I don’t see why the Moon administration even thought the Japanese government was ready to do them any favors considering all the animosity between them the past four years:

South Korean President Moon Jae-in has decided not to visit Japan this week, as no satisfactory accomplishment is expected in proposed summit talks, Cheong Wa Dae announced Monday.

Moon plans to send Hwang Hee, minister of culture, sports and tourism, there to attend the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games, slated for Friday, as head of his government’s delegation.

The president had considered a trip to Tokyo for the event. South Korea and Japan had consultations on the possibility of holding the first face-to-face summit between Moon and Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga on the occasion.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.