Category: Inter-Korean Issues

Tweet of the Day: Stop Acting Like KJU’s Spokesperson

| March 12, 2019

Tweet of the Day: Nominee for Unification Minister will Likely Push to Reopen Kaesong Industrial Complex

| March 10, 2019

Former ROK Unification Minister Claims John Bolton is a “White Cavalry Leader” that Does Not Mind Killing Native-Americans

| March 9, 2019

It is pretty clear that the South Korean left really dislikes John Bolton now that they resulted to racist name calling which probably means he is doing a good job protecting America’s interests:

Former Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun speaks during a seminar at the National Assembly, Tuesday, on the second summit between North Korea and the U.S. and prospects for inter-Korean economic cooperation. Yonhap

Former Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun claimed Tuesday that the abrupt ending of the summit in Hanoi between U.S. President Donald trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was “intentional” and engineered by National Security Adviser John Bolton.

Calling Bolton a “big hurdle” with regard to issues related to the Korean Peninsula, Jeong alleged the security adviser persuaded Trump to walk away from the talks with Kim. 

“Bolton, a North Korea hawk, reminds me of a white cavalry leader in an old Western movie who doesn’t feel guilty about killing Native Americans,” Jeong said while meeting with lawmakers of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK). “I believe the breakdown was intentionally brought about by the U.S. side, and Bolton was the villain in this.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but here is a good Tweet from One Free Korea that calls out Jeong for his past appeasement of North Korea:

Tweet of the Day: Moon’s Three Way Talks

| March 7, 2019

Moon Administration Pushing Kaesong Industrial Park and Kumgang Tours on Trump Administration

| March 6, 2019

As Professor B.R. Myers predicted, the Moon administration is quickly pushing the Kaesong Industrial Park and Mt. Kumgang tours on the Trump administration as some kind of “ethnic exemption” to sanctions:

South Korea will talk to the United States about preparatory work for the future resumption of two key inter-Korean economic projects and about waiving sanctions on North Korea if necessary, Unification Minister Cho Myoung-gyon said Tuesday.
Cho made the remarks a day after he reported to President Moon Jae-in that the government will discuss with the U.S. ways to resume a long-suspended tour program to the North’s Mount Kumgang and reopen an industrial complex in the North’s border city of Kaesong.
South Korea is considering these measures as part of efforts to keep the dialogue momentum alive and create better conditions for negotiations after last week’s breakdown of the second summit between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

President Moon Replaces “Peace Regime” with “Peninsular Regime” In Independence Day Remarks

| March 3, 2019

Notice how President Moon is not using the term “peace regime” like he usually does, he now is saying “peninsular regime”. Is he signaling that he wants his confederation with North Korea without an agreed upon peace treaty between the US and North Korea?:

South Korea’s President Moon Jae-in laid out his vision for a “new Korean Peninsula regime” Friday, calling it a community for peaceful and economic cooperation that breaks with the country’s checkered history of conflict and ideological divide.
Speaking at a ceremony marking the centennial anniversary of the March 1 Independence Movement against Japanese colonial rule, Moon said that the regime will create a peaceful order in the coming century in which “we will take on a leading role.” (…..)

Moon said the new peninsula regime will be a new community of economic cooperation. For this, he said his government will consult with the U.S. on ways to resume stalled tours to Mount Kumgang on the North’s east coast and the operation of the joint industrial complex in the North’s border city of Kaesong.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I recommend reading my prior posting on Moon’s confederation idea with North Korea.

It will be interesting to see what the US reaction would be if Moon decides to unilaterally break sanctions by restarting the tourism project or the Kaesong Industrial Park. Moon is probably under enormous pressure from North Korea now to do something to relieve sanctions since the 2nd Trump-Kim Summit failed to do so.

North Korea Slows Down Military Cooperation with South Korea

| February 20, 2019

It looks like the North Korean military is now dragging their feet in regards to cooperation with the ROK military:

 South and North Korea appear to have struggled to move forward their 2018 military accord aimed at reducing tensions and building trust amid a lack of progress in denuclearization and a focus on a second summit between Washington and Pyongyang, observers said Tuesday.
Since the beginning of this year, the two Koreas have held few talks over the implementation of the accord, in stark contrast to fast progress in the first three months after their defense chiefs signed it in September.
Pyongyang has recently been preoccupied with preparations for the second summit between leader Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump, scheduled to take place on Feb. 27-28 in Hanoi, Vietnam.
If the summit produces tangible results, it could help facilitate the implementation of the military agreement and other peace-building measures on the peninsula.
“This year, inter-Korean consultations have rarely been held, though there have been exchanges of documents (about the accord),” a government source said on condition of anonymity.

Yonhap

It appears the North Korean military did what they had to do to create the perception of progress. They are likely not going to do much more until they get what they want such as a peace treaty and sanctions dropped.

South Korea Pushing Forward with Bid to Host 2032 Olympics with North Korea

| February 13, 2019

This would be the first Olympic Games hosted by a brutal dictator since 1936 when Nazi Germany and Adolf Hitler hosted the games. If the Koreans can hold off until the 2036 Olympics Games they can come up with a slogan celebrating 100 years since the last dictator hosted the games:

Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon (R) and Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) Vice President Kim Young-chae pose with a document appointing Seoul as the South Korean candidate city for a joint 2032 Summer Olympics bid with North Korea after a KSOC vote at the Jincheon National Training Center in Jincheon, 90 kilometers south of Seoul, on Feb. 11, 2019.

Seoul was selected Monday as the South Korean candidate city for a joint Olympic bid with North Korea.
The Korean Sport & Olympic Committee (KSOC) said Seoul was chosen over Busan as the candidate city for the 2032 Summer Games at its general assembly at the National Training Center in Jincheon, North Chungcheong Province. Seoul earned 34 out of 49 votes from KSOC members.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

South Korea’s Plans to Send Tamiflu to North Korea Has Been Delayed

| February 9, 2019

As I have said before why can’t a country that can afford a nuclear weapons program buy its own Tamiflu?:

South Korea has no problem in drawing global cooperation for its planned delivery of antiviral medication to North Korea, a unification ministry official said Thursday.
The government promised to send 200,000 doses of Tamiflu to North Korea via a land route over their western border, but delivery has been repeatedly put off as Seoul says more time is needed for relevant preparations.
Speculation arose that Washington’s discomfort with the plan’s potential undermining of a global sanctions regime against Pyongyang might be behind the prolonged delay.

Yonhap

The hesitation from Washington is probably because they realize the Tamiflu is likely going to be sold on the blackmarket for millions as yet another illicit Kim regime money making operation to avoid sanctions.

Tweet of the Day: South Korea Violated Sanctions with Petroleum Exports to North Korea

| January 25, 2019