Lee In-young: "Inter-Korean Relations Should Be Developed Separately from North Korean Nuclear Issues"

Minister of Unification Nominee Confirmation Hearing
"North Korea should not worsen inter-Korean relations by saying North Korea-US talks are impossible"

Minister of Unification nominee Lee In-young is moving by vehicle after finishing his statement on inter-Korean policy 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 23rd that the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue and the development of inter-Korean relations should not be linked, but rather inter-Korean relations should be improved and developed independently. He emphasized creativity and imagination in inter-Korean relations and advocated for the expansion of cooperation between the two Koreas on humanitarian issues.

In his opening remarks at the confirmation hearing held by the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee that morning, Lee said, "Even if North Korea?U.S. relations falter, inter-Korean relations must continuously progress with their own goals."

He added, "North Korea?U.S. relations can also advance driven by the momentum of inter-Korean relations, realizing a virtuous cycle in practice," and expressed hope that "the North will move away from the attitude of freezing inter-Korean relations just because North Korea?U.S. talks are stalled."

Lee pointed out, "We should pay attention to the experience of the Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun administrations, which persuaded the international community and secured North Korea's cooperation by pursuing the development of inter-Korean relations and the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue in parallel, not linking them," emphasizing that "the starting point for parallel progress is the restoration of inter-Korean relations."

He said, "We need to approach this with creativity and imagination," and added, "I will take the lead in creating bold changes to turn 'North Korea?U.S. time' into 'inter-Korean time'."

Lee stressed the need to firmly establish principles and institutionalize them for the continuous development of inter-Korean relations, highlighting the promotion of exchange and cooperation in the humanitarian field.

He stated, "Above all, humanitarian issues such as 'food, medical care, and seeing loved ones before death' must be separated from political issues and the principle of never suspending them under any circumstances must be upheld." He added, "Along with this, the scope of inter-Korean cooperation should be expanded to enable joint responses to cross-border issues such as diseases, disasters, calamities, and climate change."

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