This is actually a little surprising to me that President Lee did not hedge on maintaining the forced labor and comfort women agreements with Japan. It is good to see that he is maintaining policy consistency between governments. We will see what happens in the future though when he needs a distraction from some domestic political scandal of some kind. It always seems like that is the time ROK politicians play the anti-Japan card:
On relations with Japan, Lee said his government will uphold past agreements on the issues of wartime forced labor and former sex slave for Japanese troops, euphemistically called “comfort women.”
“It is very difficult for the South Korean people to accept these agreements,” he said in the interview. “But as they are promises made between countries, it would be undesirable to overturn them.”
Although Lee had previously criticized the agreements, he said that as president he intends to honor them in the interest of bilateral relations, noting his dual responsibility to ensure policy consistency and maintain national trust while also considering the views of the Korean public, victims and their bereaved families.
He also expressed hope that Seoul and Tokyo can confront painful historical issues squarely and move relations forward.
You can read more at the link.
How cute President Lee thinks he can get the Kim regime to denuclearize:
President Lee Jae Myung has said he will pursue a three-stage denuclearization plan for North Korea, with Seoul approaching such a strategy via active efforts for dialogue with Pyongyang based on the solid alliance with the United States.
In an interview with Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun ahead of his visit to Tokyo for summit talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Lee said he will seek to freeze North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs in the first stage.
In the second and final stage, Lee said he will seek to reduce and dismantle North Korea’s nuclear program, according to a script of the interview provided by the presidential office.
South Korea, while maintaining close coordination with the U.S., will actively pursue inter-Korean dialogue to establish conditions for the goal, Lee told the Japanese newspaper.
You can read more at the link, but I am sure Lee knows that he has no chance of getting North Korea to denuclearize. That is why his plan first has pursuing a nuclear freeze deal. This is the only viable deal that can be pursued with North Korea at this time. A cap on the number of North Korean nuclear weapons and ICBMs in return for dropping sanctions might be something the Kim regime may go for.
The big question is what is the North Koreans doing to restore these agreements, or will it all be one sided:
Lee said the South under his leadership will respect the North’s current system and that it will not pursue any form of unification by absorption.
He also said that Seoul will take “proactive, gradual steps” to restore the Sept. 19 military agreement, signed between the two sides in 2018 to reduce border tensions.
“If small, practical steps pile up like pebbles, mutual trust will be restored. The path to peace will widen, and a foundation will be laid for South and North Korea to grow together,” Lee said.
You can read more at the link, but that is the problem with the Korean left; they actually think the North Koreans want peace. The North Korean system of government cannot survive if there is peace with the South. The Kim regime uses the unification of the Korean peninsula by removing the U.S. imperialists and the traitorous ROK government as a rationale for their continued one party rule. Without the goal of reunifying the peninsula what unifying ideology would the Kim regime be left with to justify their rule?
I would be more impressed if Kim Jong-un came out and told his people the same thing about South Korea:
President Lee Jae Myung said South Korea will not seek to absorb North Korea for unification, in an address marking the 80th anniversary of Korea’s liberation from 1910-45 Japanese colonial rule, Friday.
This conciliatory message is the latest in the Lee administration’s conciliatory overtures toward Pyongyang, signaling a commitment to peaceful dialogue and indicating a softer approach to inter-Korean relations.
“We affirm our respect for the North’s current system, aver that we will not pursue any form of unification by absorption and assert that we have no intention of engaging in hostile acts,” Lee emphasized in the speech.
You can read more at the link.
So far President Lee is trying to maintain positive relations with Tokyo. How long will it be though before he brings up Dokdo, comfort women, or some other hotly contested topic to deflect attention from a domestic issue?:
President Lee Jae Myung will visit Tokyo on Aug. 23 to hold talks with Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba, Lee’s office said Wednesday.
The meeting will involve a dinner hosted by Ishiba during Lee’s two-day working visit while on his way to Washington to meet US President Donald Trump on Aug. 25.
Lee’s trip to Japan is meant to resume a shuttle diplomacy — through which leaders of the two countries take turns traveling to a counterpart’s country frequently without diplomatic formalities — Lee’s spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a briefing at the presidential office in Seoul.
You can read more at the link.
