Park Ji-won on the Document Claiming "North Korea Provided $3 Billion": "Forgery" (Comprehensive)

Joo Ho-young "Inter-Korean Economic Cooperation Aids North Korea's Nuclear Development"... Park Ji-won "How Do You Know That?"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] Park Ji-won, the nominee for the Director of the National Intelligence Service, stated on the 27th that if the existence of a 'secret economic cooperation agreement' other than the publicly disclosed agreement from the 2000 Inter-Korean Summit is true, he would "stake my life and everything on taking responsibility."

On the same day, during the National Assembly Intelligence Committee confirmation hearing, when Joo Ho-young, floor leader of the United Future Party, pointed out, "If you add it all up, it's 3 billion dollars unknown to the public. If true, you should withdraw your candidacy," Park responded accordingly.

Floor leader Joo raised suspicions that Park signed a document separately providing a total of 3 billion dollars to North Korea during the process of the June 15, 2000 Inter-Korean Summit. In response, Park said, "The signature was forged to slander me and President Kim Dae-jung," and added, "I will request an investigation by the authorities."

Joo pointed out, "The agreement contains content about providing dollars based on humanitarian spirit on the occasion of the Inter-Korean Summit," and "The signature is exactly the same as Park's." Park replied, "I don't know how the document was obtained, but the April 8 agreement has been disclosed so far, and I have no memory of or signature on any other document."

The document revealed by Floor leader Joo at the United Future Party emergency committee meeting that afternoon is titled 'Agreement on Economic Cooperation.' The document states that "from June 2000, 2.5 billion dollars in investment and economic cooperation loans will be provided to North Korea's social overhead capital sector over three years," and also includes a passage that "the South will provide 500 million dollars on the occasion of the Inter-Korean Summit," according to Joo. He said, "It must be clarified how much was actually provided to North Korea," and added, "Based on this, I said (Park) was colluding with the enemy."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

When Floor leader Joo asked Park whether funds from inter-Korean economic cooperation such as the Kaesong Industrial Complex helped North Korea's nuclear weapons development, Park said, "I do not know specifically," and added, "Even now, if the Kaesong Industrial Complex was developed as agreed on 20 million pyeong and former President Lee Myung-bak built dormitories, I believe it would have achieved great economic development."

When Joo quoted a professor saying, "If North Korea used that money for nuclear development, it is a bigger problem, and even if not, it is used as an opportunity cost to bring in nuclear development funds," Park responded, "I think the professor is mistaken."

Regarding Joo's remark that "inter-Korean economic cooperation might have helped North Korea's nuclear development even a little," Park answered, "I do not know and have no such data."

When Joo pressed, "Calling a mother 'mother' is because she gave birth to you. Isn't the relationship between nuclear development and inter-Korean economic cooperation logically the same?" Park replied, "Do not force logic on me," and said, "How would I know that?"

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