Lee In-young "Let's Exchange Baekdusan Water and Daedonggang Liquor for South Korean Rice and Medicine in Kind"

Minister of Unification Nominee "Start Small, Think Big"
"We Can Independently Pursue Humanitarian Exchange and Cooperation"

Lee In-young, the nominee for Minister of Unification, is making a statement on North Korea policy and other issues at the Inter-Korean Summit Headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 21st. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

Lee In-young, the nominee for Minister of Unification, stated on the 21st, "We can try inter-Korean exchange and cooperation by trading North Korea's Geumgangsan and Baekdusan water, and Daedonggang liquor for our (South Korea's) rice or medicine in kind."

At a brief press conference held at the Inter-Korean Dialogue Headquarters in Samcheong-dong, Jongno-gu, Lee said, "We can start inter-Korean trade on a small scale, and if the situation and conditions improve, we can develop it on a larger scale."

Emphasizing 'creative solutions' for restoring inter-Korean relations, Lee said, "Restoring dialogue is the most important," and added, "Next, I hope humanitarian exchange and cooperation can be promoted immediately."

Regarding concerns that inter-Korean exchange and cooperation might be difficult due to sanctions against North Korea, he explained the purpose of his proposal by saying, "We need to overcome (practical constraints) in a way through barter trade," and "In that respect, I hope small-scale trade in humanitarian exchange areas such as food and visual materials can be promoted."

He also expressed willingness to promote the Geumgangsan individual tourism project. Lee said, "During the tenure of former Minister Kim Yeon-chul, the possibility of individual tourism to Geumgangsan was already mentioned," and added, "We can try to implement policies to open up Geumgangsan tourism and individual tourism."

Lee reiterated his intention regarding reunions of separated families. He said, "For elderly separated families, I think individual visits and mutual visits can be promoted," and added, "I hope it will first take place in Geumgangsan, and if not possible there, I will try to promote a small-scale reunion at Panmunjom."

Regarding the need for cooperation with the United States, such as through the Korea-US Working Group, he emphasized that there is an independent space for inter-Korean relations. Lee stated, "My consistent position is that we should distinguish and do what we can independently by ourselves," and stressed, "For example, regarding humanitarian exchanges, we can proceed independently without going through the Working Group."

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