Yeo "Industrial Ministry official implementing nuclear phase-out policy reviewing North Korean nuclear power? Reason must be clarified"

Civil Servants Created Practical Documents Themselves, Unconvincing
Additional Measures Under Review to Reveal Facts Including National Audit

Joo Ho-young, floor leader of the People Power Party (right), is speaking at an expert meeting on suspicions of North Korean nuclear power plant promotion held at the National Assembly on the 3rd.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] On the 3rd, the People Power Party held an expert briefing session on suspicions regarding North Korea's nuclear power plant project and stated that they would strive to uncover the truth.

Cho Tae-yong, a member of the People Power Party and the secretary of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Security Special Committee, said to reporters after the briefing, "There seemed to be no disagreement that it is hard to accept the context that officials from the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) created practical documents on their own initiative."

He added, "There was discussion about why MOTIE officials, who were under pressure to implement the nuclear phase-out policy, created 17 documents in May reviewing plans to provide nuclear power to North Korea, and what the reasons might be. The very idea of a government pursuing a nuclear phase-out policy providing nuclear power to North Korea is something that cannot be explained to the public."

He continued, "It appears that documents reviewing the provision of nuclear power to North Korea were intensively created after the April 27 Panmunjom inter-Korean summit. This suggests that either at the April summit or through other means, North Korea showed interest in nuclear power plants, and despite pursuing a nuclear phase-out policy, MOTIE reviewed providing nuclear power because of North Korea's interest."

Cho said, "All contents, including those on the USB, are answers to the public's questions. If they demand disclosure as a matter of life and death, it would be treating the substantive truth-finding as a bargaining chip with the public." He also added, "There were strong allegations questioning whether the nuclear phase-out policy itself was correct, whether the decision-making process was proper, and whether it was illegally and hastily decided."

The People Power Party also stated that they would consider additional measures, including a parliamentary audit, to resolve the suspicions. Cho said, "It would be proper for the ruling party and government to undergo a parliamentary audit, but politically it is expected to be difficult, so I believe they will naturally consider alternative measures."

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