Lee In-young: "Korea-US Summit to Create Conditions for Resuming North Korea-US Talks... Will Restore Severed Dialogue Channels"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Lee In-young, Minister of Unification, stated that "the conditions have been sufficiently created to resume North Korea-US dialogue through the South Korea-US summit," and as the main department in charge of North Korea policy, they will restore the severed dialogue channels and proceed with the process of resuming talks.

On the 24th, Minister Lee evaluated the results of the South Korea-US summit on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus,' saying, "Not only inter-Korean relations but also North Korea-US relations have created sufficient conditions to resume dialogue and take a step toward peace."

Regarding the inclusion of the Panmunjom Declaration and the Singapore Agreement in the joint statement of the South Korea-US leaders, Minister Lee said, "It reflects a clear will for dialogue and problem-solving approaches based on existing agreements," adding, "It sufficiently reflects not only North Korea-US relations but also the spirit of autonomous and independent inter-Korean relationship improvement, including these aspects.

In response to criticism that sanctions against North Korea remain, he said, "There is definitely an open possibility for a flexible approach to create phased and simultaneous situational measures depending on how clearly North Korea expresses its will regarding denuclearization," and added, "Since senior US officials have repeatedly stated their intention to exercise maximum flexibility, such concrete approaches can occur once the North Korea-US dialogue process begins."

Minister Lee also revealed that follow-up measures after the South Korea-US summit, such as restoring dialogue channels, are being considered. He said, "First of all, I think I should steadily take steps to restore the dialogue channels that have been severed and resume talks," adding, "If COVID-19 is a constraint, I hope we can find ways to have dialogue through non-face-to-face video conferencing.

Minister Lee stated, "Cooperation in health and medical fields centered on COVID-19, joint response to disasters and calamities, agreements related to climate change?these are things we can do with each other anytime right now," and added, "I want to explore processes that lead to more practical and broader cooperation by exercising sanction flexibility as phased and simultaneous measures corresponding to denuclearization, including non-commercial infrastructure issues such as railroads and roads, and public infrastructure."

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Unification announced that the 5.24 sanctions against North Korea, imposed following North Korea's sinking of the Cheonan warship in 2010, have lost their effectiveness and do not affect inter-Korean exchanges.

At a regular briefing on the same day marking the 11th anniversary of the implementation of the 5.24 measures, Lee Jong-joo, spokesperson for the Ministry of Unification, said, "The 5.24 measures have effectively lost their effectiveness due to flexibilization and exceptions over time," and added, "They do not pose an obstacle to promoting inter-Korean exchange and cooperation."

Spokesperson Lee also urged, "The Ministry of Unification will do its best to restore inter-Korean dialogue and restart the Korean Peninsula peace process based on the achievements of the South Korea-US summit," and "We hope North Korea will return to the spirit of the Panmunjom Declaration and the Singapore joint statement and actively respond to dialogue and cooperation."

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