North Korea Declares Breakdown of Inter-Korean Relations: "South Korea Will Regret and Suffer from Now On" (Comprehensive)

North Korea's Jang Kum Chol, Head of the United Front Department, Statement
"Trust in the South Korean Authorities Shattered"
"Never Want to Face South Korea Again"

President Moon Jae-in is seen embracing Chairman Kim Jong-un, who is returning to North Korea, after meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump (right) at Panmunjom on the afternoon of June 30 last year.

Jang Geum-chul, head of the United Front Department of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, stated on the 12th, "From now on, the passing time will be truly regrettable and painful for the South Korean authorities." He claimed that inter-Korean relations have deteriorated to this state because the South Korean government not only failed to keep its promises but was also incompetent. He effectively declared the collapse of inter-Korean relations, saying he no longer wishes to face the South Korean authorities.

On the same day, Jang issued a statement titled "Inter-Korean Relations Have Already Reached an Irreparable State" through the North Korean state media, Korean Central News Agency, saying, "Through this incident, the trust we tried hard to have in the South Korean authorities has been shattered to pieces."

He referred to the Blue House's announcement the previous day, after holding a Standing Committee meeting of the National Security Council (NSC), to thoroughly crack down on leaflet distribution activities toward the North, saying, "The Korean proverb 'locking the barn after the horse is lost' is not wrong," and added, "For us, suspicion outweighs trust."

Since the statement by Kim Yo-jong, First Deputy Director of the Workers' Party of Korea, on the 4th, the Blue House and the Ministry of Unification have expressed their intention to enact a law banning leaflet distribution toward the North and have actively responded by requesting investigations into the leaders of leaflet distribution groups. Although the government has taken this step despite criticism of 'submissiveness to the North,' North Korea has consistently belittled these efforts.

Jang said, "Listening to the Blue House's response, there is a scent of atonement and reflection, and the will for strict measures seems plausible," but added, "However, I cannot shake off the suspicion that this is a scheme concocted by the Blue House to escape the current crisis by scheming in their own way."

President Moon and Chairman Kim shaking hands across the Military Demarcation Line at Panmunjom on April 27, 2018.

He blamed South Korea for the current collapse of inter-Korean relations. Jang said, "The South Korean authorities have only been watching left and right, up and down, and just spouting flashy words," and added, "It is not because words were insufficient or documents were not properly left behind that inter-Korean relations have come to this state."

He claimed, "Inter-Korean relations have come to this state because they had no will to fulfill their words and promises, no power to carry them out, and were powerless and incompetent."

Jang said, "If they had sincerely worried about the deterioration of inter-Korean relations, they would have enacted such laws (banning leaflet distribution) ten or twenty times or more during the long two years since the Panmunjom Declaration was adopted."

He added, "Who would take seriously those who make agreements and declarations solemnly announced to the world with documents and seals, only to turn them into scraps of paper? No matter how much oily talk they make, if they try to gloss over today's situation, which has erupted like a volcano with the rage of our people, with such a cheap play, it would be the most foolish miscalculation and would rather become another mockery of us."

He said, "I really do not want to face those who often make empty boasts as if they will do something big but cannot take a single step in practice anymore."

After the Hanoi North Korea-US summit collapsed, Jang Kum-chol (red circle) became the head of the Workers' Party United Front Department, succeeding Kim Yong-chol.

This is the first time that Jang Geum-chul, head of the United Front Department, has issued a statement in his personal name. Jang took over the position of head of the United Front Department, overseeing inter-Korean affairs, from Kim Yong-chol, Vice Chairman of the Workers' Party, after the second North Korea-U.S. summit in Hanoi in February last year.

In addition to the external media Korean Central News Agency, North Korea also broadcast Jang Geum-chul's statement on the 13th at 0:05 a.m. on Korean Central Broadcasting, a domestic radio station for North Korean residents.

This contrasts with North Korea's announcement of a message criticizing the U.S. on the 12th, while not disclosing related content to its residents, leaving room for dialogue with the United States.

On the 5th, a spokesperson for the United Front Department said in a statement, "Since it will be sent away or destroyed anyway, it is better to get rid of it quickly," and added, "Facing the current situation head-on and going as far as possible in the vicious cycle of confrontation is our determination."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.