Min Byeongdeok, who visited China, says "Visit to China was a very appropriate and brave action"

"No Human Rights Content at Tibet Expo"

As relations between South Korea and China have deteriorated due to the Sing Hai-ming incident, seven lawmakers from the Democratic Party of Korea visited China and Tibet for a 3-night, 4-day trip and returned the day before. Amid criticism from the ruling party calling it 'bribery diplomacy,' Min Byung-duk, a member of the delegation, described their visit as "a very appropriate and regrettable but brave action."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 19th, Min said on SBS's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' "We agree that Ambassador Sing Hai-ming's remarks were inappropriate, but I believe that especially at times like this, we need to go more," expressing his view.

He added, "Especially when there are verbal exchanges between governments and diplomats, even the opposition should go a bit more, and members of the National Assembly should go to see the differences in positions, persuade where possible, and listen where possible. I felt that if we hadn't gone, it would have been very bad."

He continued, "(China) was very grateful. I thought that if we hadn't gone, it would have seriously damaged trust. In fact, the Chinese spokesperson said, 'The visit from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs within China helped improve Korea-China relations,' and shortly after, Tony Blinken even went, calling Minister Park Jin to express hopes for improving Korea-China relations," he said.

Regarding criticism over visiting Tibet amid human rights concerns, he said, "When the armed uprising against China occurred in Tibet in 1959, records say about 120,000 people died. It seems that this is what people are referring to," and pointed out, "During the Park Geun-hye administration, Gyeongsangnam-do established sisterhood ties and continuously exchanged delegations, yet no one said anything."

He added, "Now that the Democratic Party went, people are making these remarks, but I question whether it is necessary to raise such a sensitive issue about Tibet's human rights within our government," and said, "We went for a cultural expo, and nowhere in the related content was there anything about that. But by highlighting events from 70 years ago and continuously discussing them in diplomacy, does that really help our national interest?"

Regarding the ruling party's criticism of 'bribery diplomacy,' he said, "Even ordinary citizens, when inviting guests, pay for meals, provide accommodations, and give appropriate small gifts when they leave. Isn't that customary? Such customs also exist in diplomacy."

He added, "In the case of the Busan Expo, when we invite guests, we cover all the expenses. If politicians or ministers who are invited go, are they committing bribery? And if we invite them, is it bribery offering? How can diplomacy be conducted with such thinking?"

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