Jeong Eui-yong "Agreement on South Korea-US End-of-War Declaration Wording... Difficult to Improve Inter-Korean Relations Due to Beijing Incident" (Comprehensive)

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporters Inho Yoo and Jieun Lee] Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong stated on the 29th that the agreement on the wording of the South Korea-U.S. declaration to end the war has "already been virtually agreed upon." Regarding the possibility of a North-South summit coinciding with the Beijing Winter Olympics, he responded that it is "virtually difficult."

At a press briefing held at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs building that morning, Minister Chung said, "Regarding the declaration to end the war, South Korea and the U.S. already share an understanding of its importance."

He explained that he reconfirmed this fact during a meeting with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the expanded G7 Foreign and Development Ministers' Meeting held in Liverpool, UK, on the 11th and 12th of this month (local time).

Although it has been reported that South Korea and the U.S. have made significant progress in consultations on the wording of the declaration to end the war to bring North Korea to the dialogue table, this is the first time a senior government diplomatic official has stated that the consultations are virtually complete.

However, he added, "We are reviewing various ways to advance consultations with North Korea."

When asked whether the wording of the declaration to end the war had been shared with North Korea, he replied, "At this stage, it is difficult to share it externally" and did not provide an answer. He also added that they have not received North Korea's position through China.

Regarding a question about North Korean Workers' Party General Secretary Kim Jong-un's willingness to denuclearize, he expressed the view that "negotiations should be conducted with an attitude of trusting the other party's willingness."

Minister Chung said about the ongoing North Korean Workers' Party plenary meeting, "We are closely monitoring how North Korea will send external messages regarding us," and added, "We will have to observe until early next year to understand the situation."

Regarding the possibility of North-South or North-South-China summits being held during the Beijing Winter Olympics in February next year, he expressed a skeptical stance, saying, "We hoped to use the Beijing Olympics as an opportunity to improve inter-Korean relations, but at present, I think such expectations are virtually becoming difficult."

Nevertheless, he emphasized, "We will not give up hope until the end and will make every effort to use all opportunities to improve inter-Korean relations and to early restart the peace process on the Korean Peninsula."

On the diplomatic boycott of the Beijing Winter Olympics, he reaffirmed the position that "it is not being considered," and regarding whether China invited President Moon Jae-in to the Olympics, he refrained from commenting, saying, "There is nothing to share at this stage."

Regarding Korea-Japan relations and the issue of Japanese military comfort women, he retorted, "You all know very well where the original sin lies" and urged Japan to take a progressive stance.

Minister Chung said, "Japan stubbornly insists on strictly adhering to the 2015 (comfort women) agreement until the end, so no progress has been made at all," and added, "We hope Japan will respond more progressively and reasonably."

Regarding the discharge of contaminated water from the Fukushima nuclear power plant, he pointed out, "Our government's basic position is to protect the health and safety of our people," and said, "We have requested Japan to provide scientific evidence that our people can feel reassured, but we believe Japan has not yet met our demands."

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