South Korean Prime Minister Conveys Concerns Over Repatriation of North Korean Defectors to Xi Jinping (Comprehensive)

Met at Hangzhou Asian Games on 23rd Last Month
Expressed Concerns... Mentioned 'Important and Worrying Issue'

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo stated on the 18th that during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping last month, he conveyed the South Korean government's concerns regarding the repatriation of North Korean defectors.

At a regular press briefing with reporters at the Government Complex Sejong in Sejong City that afternoon, Prime Minister Han was asked about the matter and responded, “On the 23rd of last month, I visited China to attend the Hangzhou Asian Games and during my meeting with President Xi, I raised this issue as it is an important and worrisome matter for us (regarding the repatriation of North Korean defectors).”

However, Prime Minister Han added, “I met President Xi on the occasion of attending the Asian Games and had a free conversation, so the repatriation issue was not set as a prior agenda nor was there any coordination on the agenda,” and he refrained from elaborating, saying, “I cannot specifically disclose the details of the dialogue with the head of state.”

On the 23rd, Han Duck-soo, the Prime Minister of South Korea, who visited China to attend the opening ceremony of the Hangzhou Asian Games, held a bilateral meeting with Xi Jinping, the President of China, at the West Lake State Guesthouse. Photo by the Prime Minister's Office

Additionally, Prime Minister Han stated, “We will devise emergency measures for items with price increases such as napa cabbage during the kimchi-making season.”

Regarding plans to respond to the growing volatility in oil prices due to international instability such as the Israel-Palestine war, Prime Minister Han explained, “We need to shift to a structure that uses less fuel and relies more on nuclear power and renewable energy while improving efficiency.” He continued, “We must make great efforts to consume less energy,” emphasizing, “Although it is an uncomfortable truth, energy prices need to be maintained at a certain level.”

He also cited the case of Greece, where former Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, symbolizing populist politics, stepped down and the right-wing party led by current Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis regained power. Referring to this example, he said, “The previous government barely raised energy prices, but the current government has had to raise them inevitably, and I worry and feel distressed about who the public thinks has implemented better policies.” Regarding recent economic conditions including inflation, Prime Minister Han said, “The Middle East situation could affect the overall economic stability. We are preparing emergency measures for items such as napa cabbage and green onions in anticipation of the kimchi-making season.”

On the expansion of medical school quotas, Prime Minister Han said, “There are naturally concerns and side effects related to the policy, but a significant portion of the public seems to support (increasing the number of doctors).” He added, “We will proceed while thoroughly gaining public consensus through good dialogue with stakeholders. It is necessary to continue discussions with the medical community to ensure smooth implementation.” However, he noted that the specific scale of the increase has not yet been decided.

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