[Initial Moment] The Era of Hardship for the Ministry of Unification

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] "In an atmosphere that seems to be taking the existence of ‘two countries’ as a given, it is not wise for us to first use a name that reinforces such tendencies. Using ‘Ministry of Unification’ is more realistic than the name ‘Ministry of Inter-Korean Relations.’"

It is truly the ‘ordeal era’ for the Ministry of Unification. Four months ago, the opposition party leader raised the idea of ‘abolishing the Ministry of Unification,’ and now voices are growing even among ruling party figures, including former ministers of unification, suggesting that the ministry’s name should be changed to ‘Ministry of Inter-Korean Relations.’ Minister of Unification Lee In-young directly expressed a ‘no change’ stance at a press briefing on the 24th, putting out the fire, but this also reflects the difficult situation the Ministry of Unification faces ahead of a regime change.

The Ministry of Unification has been mentioned as a target for abolition or renaming every time the government changes. In the early days of the Lee Myung-bak administration, abolition was proposed, and during the Park Geun-hye transition team, there was a movement to rename it to the Ministry of Inter-Korean Relations. This was possible because North Korea policy changed drastically with each regime change. Progressive governments adopted conciliatory policies toward the North, while conservative governments took a hardline stance, swinging between hot and cold approaches. It is not surprising that discussions about the identity of the Ministry of Unification are resurfacing about four months before the presidential election.

However, it is significant that such voices are coming not only from the opposition, which has long advocated abolition or renaming, but also from the progressive camp. Jeong Se-hyun, former Minister of Unification and former Senior Vice Chairman of the National Unification Advisory Council, diagnosed that ‘unification is currently impossible’ and advised renaming the ministry to the Ministry of Inter-Korean Relations. Lee Jae-myung, the ruling party’s presidential candidate from the Democratic Party, also recently said, "It is too late to aim for unification," which aligns with Jeong’s perception.

Minister Lee mentioned at the briefing the "atmosphere that seems to take ‘two countries’ as a given," indicating that North and South Korea are becoming separate states. In fact, they have been so for a long time. The biggest reason is that the gap in national power between the two Koreas has become so wide that comparison is meaningless. South Korea, based on an open economy, has become a top 10 global economic power and a cultural powerhouse, while North Korea, closing its borders and suffering economic hardship under the slogan of ‘self-reliance,’ is difficult to unify as one country.

The internal social atmosphere is similar. Under Kim Jong-un’s era, North Korea has declared the coexistence of ‘two states’ by emphasizing ‘our state’ instead of ‘our nation,’ and in the South, especially among the younger generation, the perception that ‘unification is unnecessary’ is spreading widely. In particular, in recent years, the belief that ‘unification is unnecessary’ has rapidly expanded. According to the Unification Research Institute’s ‘Unification Awareness Survey,’ the preference for peaceful coexistence, which essentially means ‘two countries,’ increased by more than 10 percentage points from 43.1% in 2016 to 56.5% in April this year, while the preference for unification dropped from 37.3% to 25.4%. Among the millennial generation, only 12.4% preferred unification, about one in ten, while 71.4% favored peaceful coexistence. In this situation, even the ambitious Korean Peninsula peace process promoted during the Moon administration has been stalled for more than two years since the Hanoi summit collapse, inevitably shrinking the Ministry of Unification’s position. The abolition and renaming debates have gradually gained strength in this reality.

However, North-South unification is not something to be easily given up. Unification as our ultimate goal is a key link to overcoming the history of division, establishing a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, and advancing into the continent. Even if the realistic recognition is that achieving this goal in the short term is difficult, the significance of changing the status or name of the Ministry of Unification should be reconsidered in this context. Although there will be renewed debates after next year’s election results, the Ministry of Unification still appears highly likely and necessary to continue existing.

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