‘Complete denuclearization is key agenda’ By Kim Yoo-chul

National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong, right, and National Intelligence Service Director Suh Hoon talk ahead of a special security meeting at Cheong Wa Dae, Tuesday. Yonhap

The head of the President Moon Jae-in’s five-member special delegation said late Tuesday the envoys will discuss plans to establish a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula, the development of inter-Korean relations and the complete denuclearization of the peninsula when they meet with North Korean representatives today.

“The special envoys will discuss advancing inter-Korean ties, the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and setting up a permanent peace. We need the backing of the public,” Chung Eui-yong, the chief of the South’s delegation said in a media briefing at Cheong Wa Dae, a few hours before the delegations departure to the North.

The envoys will fly to Pyongyang at 7:40 a.m., using the West Sea direct air route on a “one day mission,” as the effects of the historic June 12 summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and the North’s leader Kim Jong-un appear to be dissipating.

Chung said the delegation expects to meet the North Korean leader during their stay in Pyongyang; however, details regarding a possible face-to-face meeting with Kim have yet to be fixed.

“I am carrying President Moon’s handwritten letter,” Chung, who is also the presidential national security advisor, told reporters, adding the peninsula is at a critical stage in moving toward a permanent peace.

“As the President said, setting up a permanent peace will only be possible when the peninsula is completely denuclearized. The delegation should bear this in mind,” said Chung.

The comments came after President Moon convened a meeting on security and foreign affairs ahead of the delegations departure. The presidential chief of staff and ministers of defense, foreign affairs and unification attended the meeting.

The envoys may offer a comprehensive development plan for the North Korean economy if Pyongyang presents a concrete and detailed action timeline for the dismantlement of its nuclear weapons programs, said sources.

“The envoys will offer a package deal that includes more specifics of the South’s economic assistance programs if the North presents a detailed plan on denuclearization,” one source told The Korea Times.

The South’s offer includes large-scale investment in the North aimed at helping the impoverished state to have better telecommunications, electricity and water supplies, railways and logistics _ industries considered as the backbone of an economy.

Also, the delegation is expected to deliver Seoul’s intention to scale back joint military exercises with U.S. forces if the envoys receive a detailed plan for denuclearization, according to the official. Citing the sensitivity of the issue, he asked not to be identified.

The official said North Korea “holds the key” to keep the momentum for the nuclear talks alive, as the South appears to be prepared to talk to top U.S. policymakers regarding a possible easing of economic sanctions and expanding inter-Korean business projects.

“But all such things depend on what Pyongyang offers on denuclearization during the talks,” he added. Taskforces have been established at major local banks and telecom firms such as Woori Bank, SK Telecom and KT to explore business opportunities in the North.

President Moon is pursuing his signature “engagement policy” with North Korea, while the United States doubts whether the policy will push the North to abandon its nuclear ambitions, insisting that denuclearization should come first before any economic cooperation.

The North’s Kim adopted a more market-oriented policy in 2012 when he came to power as a means to overcome a years-long economic slump.

Analysts believe the North’s leader is seeking massive funds and the removal of economic and political threats to rebuild his country’s economy.

The United Nations estimated the North’s 2016 gross domestic product (GDP) at $16.79 billion, slightly smaller than Cambodia’s and a mere 0.1 percent that of the United States. Data from the Bank of Korea (BOK) showed the North’s economy shrank 3.5 percent in real terms last year amid a decline in mining and manufacturing.

Political analysts in Seoul said North Korea wants to push ahead with a newly-articulated economic development strategy via inter-Korean projects with more South Korean capital.

“The North’s leader doesn’t want to receive huge economic assistance from the United States although U.S. President Donald Trump guaranteed him that during their June summit. What’s interesting to see is that the North wants to get what it needs for development from the South,” said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies.

North Korea is still hoping to have some degree of a nuclear deterrent against any aggression by the United States; and so Kim has been reaching out to Seoul to achieve a permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula under the principle “for Koreans and by Koreans.”

This looks fascinating. However, all South Korean assets in the Gaeseong Industrial Complex, a joint industrial zone run by the two Koreas, were confiscated by the North years ago and business projects in the North’s designated economic zones were put on hold.

Source:koreatimes.co.kr/