New Inter-Korean Cooperation Agenda 'Climate Change' in Focus… North Korea Calls for Strengthening International Cooperation

Implementation of the Paris Agreement from January 1, 2021
North and South Korea sharing borders face simultaneous climate change risks
"Expand cooperation such as inter-Korean information exchange and joint investigations"

On January 1st, marking the New Year, North Korean residents laid flowers at the Mansudae Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il statues in Pyongyang, reported the Korean Central News Agency.

With the Paris Agreement, a new global cooperation norm to address climate change, coming into effect on January 1 of this year, 'climate change' as a cooperation agenda between South and North Korea is once again receiving attention.

Cooperation on climate change between South and North Korea is evaluated as a task of great symbolic significance not only due to the urgency of protecting life and property from immediate environmental issues but also in terms of jointly preparing for the formation of a life community in the era of unification.

On the 4th, Kim Ho-hong, Senior Researcher at the New Security Strategy Research Office of the National Security Strategy Institute, suggested in a report titled "The Launch of the New Climate Regime 'Paris Agreement' and Inter-Korean Cooperation" that "(With the implementation of the Paris Agreement) South and North Korea should focus on establishing basic infrastructure for full-scale cooperation such as mutual information exchange, joint investigations, and academic research, and as conditions mature, expand the scope of cooperation through building joint response systems, forming inter-Korean public-private joint consultative bodies, and implementing comprehensive forest restoration projects."

The report emphasized, "South and North Korea share a border and have a geopolitical characteristic where if one side is exposed to threats, it inevitably directly affects the other side," adding, "From this perspective, joint cooperation on climate change between South and North Korea is an urgent and necessary task that can no longer be delayed."

The 195 countries participating in the Paris Agreement agreed to limit the global average temperature rise to no more than 2℃ above pre-industrial levels by 2100, and further strive to limit it to 1.5℃. It replaces the Kyoto Protocol, which had been used as an international commitment regarding greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate change is a topic on which North Korea has actively emphasized international cooperation.

North Korea has actively participated in international cooperation activities related to climate change. It joined the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in December 1994, ratified the Kyoto Protocol in April 2005, and joined the Paris Agreement in August 2016. Upon joining the Paris Agreement, North Korea presented an active and aggressive "Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC)."

Recently, North Korea has continued to emphasize the importance of international cooperation to respond to climate change.

On December 21 of last year, the North Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs defined climate change as a "global issue" and stated, "All countries should not prioritize immediate economic interests but must strengthen international cooperation related to climate change," adding, "As a member of the Paris Agreement, we are doing our best to faithfully fulfill our obligations."

On June 6, 2017, North Korea also criticized the Trump administration's withdrawal from the Paris Agreement as "the height of selfishness that only cares about oneself" and "a shortsighted and foolish act."

The report stated, "Now that climate change is approaching as a new security threat beyond a simple environmental issue, it is necessary to deeply discuss climate change cooperation between South and North Korea on the occasion of the launch of this new climate regime," emphasizing, "Responding to climate change is directly related to human life and safety, so it should be pursued regardless of the situation of sanctions against the North."

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