Moon Jung-in "Concerns Over Accidental Military Clashes Between North and South... North Korea Must Explain Liaison Office Explosion"

"Explosion Acts, Difficult for Our People to Accept"

Moon Jung-in, Special Advisor to the President for Unification, Diplomacy, and Security, is delivering the keynote speech at the "2020 Korean Peninsula Peace Symposium" hosted by Yonhap News Agency, a national news agency, on the morning of the 30th at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul.

Moon Jeong-in, Special Advisor to the President for Unification, Diplomacy, and Security, urged North Korea to change on the 30th, stating that the Korean Peninsula is facing a serious crisis, including the possibility of accidental military clashes between the South and the North.

In his keynote speech at the '2020 Korean Peninsula Peace Symposium' hosted by Yonhap News Agency at Lotte Hotel in Jung-gu, Seoul, under the theme 'Post-Corona Era, a New Opportunity for the Korean Peninsula?', Special Advisor Moon said, "North Korea must change."

He criticized North Korea's recent demolition of the Kaesong Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office as a unilateral action that South Koreans can never understand.

He said, "The Kaesong Liaison Office does not simply represent a monetary value of 17 billion won," adding, "It was created as a symbol of inter-Korean reconciliation and peace using the taxes paid by the people in the South, so blowing it up unilaterally as if in wartime is hard for our people to accept."

Special Advisor Moon pointed out that there is much to be done between the South and the North, emphasizing, "Communication must be established to do anything." He stressed, "The communication lines should be restored quickly, explanations about the demolition of the liaison office should be provided, and a very progressive new breakthrough must be made."

He identified four crises facing the Korean Peninsula: the possibility of accidental military clashes between the South and the North, the deadlock in North Korea-U.S. nuclear negotiations, the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), and the intensifying U.S.-China conflict.

To prevent accidental military clashes, he emphasized the need to manage the situation stably and highlighted 'patience.' Special Advisor Moon said, "The basic spirit of the April 27 Panmunjom Declaration and the September 19 Military Agreement must be restored," and "We must seek a turnaround in the situation with patience."

He added, "In the process, diplomacy with the U.S. should be strengthened," and "It is necessary to indirectly convey our leader's will to Pyongyang through China and Russia. In that regard, diplomacy with China and Russia should also be strengthened."

Regarding COVID-19, he mentioned that the Korean medical community has presented a fairly good model and called for health cooperation between the South and the North.

Furthermore, he urged the U.S. and China, as leading nations, to stop their hegemonic competition and join forces to overcome global disasters such as COVID-19.

Special Advisor Moon added, "When we are divided, neighboring countries infiltrate us," and "While the government must make great efforts, the current crisis must be overcome under a comprehensive national consensus regardless of progressive or conservative views."

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