SEOUL, South Korea — South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Monday offered “bold” economic aid to North Korea if it abandons its nuclear weapons program, while avoiding harsh criticism of the north for days after it threatened “deadly” retaliation over the COVID-19 outbreak had it blame the south.
In a speech celebrating the end of Japanese colonization of the Korean peninsula, Yoon also called for better relations with Japan, calling the two countries partners in tackling the challenges of freedom and saying their shared values would help them resolve historical grievances related to Japan’s to overcome brutal colonial rule before the end of World War II.
Yoon’s televised Liberation Day address came days after North Korea claimed a widely disputed victory over COVID-19 but also blamed Seoul for the outbreak. The North insists leaflets and other items flown across the border by activists are spreading the virus, an unscientific claim Seoul has called “ridiculous.”
North Korea has a history of pressuring the South when it doesn’t get what it wants from the United States, and there are concerns North Korea’s threat portends a provocation that could potentially be a nuclear or large-scale missile test or even border skirmishes. Some experts say the North could stoke tensions over joint military exercises the United States and South Korea begin next week.
Yoon, a conservative who took office in May, said North Korea’s denuclearization is key to peace in the region and the world. If North Korea halts its nuclear weapons development and truly commits to a process of denuclearization, the South will respond with huge economic rewards, delivered in phases, Yoon said.
Yoon’s proposal was not much different from previous South Korean offers, which have already been rejected by North Korea, which has accelerated efforts to expand its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile program. Kim Jong Un sees his strongest guarantee of survival.
“We will implement a large-scale food delivery program, provide assistance in building infrastructure for generation, transmission and distribution of electric power, and carry out projects to modernize ports and airports to facilitate trade,” Yoon said.
“We will also help improve North Korea’s agricultural production, provide assistance in upgrading its hospitals and medical infrastructure, and undertake initiatives to facilitate international investment and financial support,” he added, stressing that such programs make North Korea’s life better would improve “significantly”.
Inter-Korean ties have soured amid a stalemate over major nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang, which were derailed in early 2019 over disagreements over exchanging a release of crippling US-led sanctions on the North and the North’s disarmament moves.
North Korea stepped up its testing activities in 2022 and so far has launched more than 30 ballistic missiles, including the first ICBM demonstrations since 2017. Experts say Kim intends to use a favorable environment to advance his weapons program The UN Security Council is divided and practically paralyzed by Russia’s war against Ukraine.
North Korea’s unusually rapid pace of arms demonstrations also underscores the reckless stance aimed at forcing Washington to accept the idea of North Korea as a nuclear power and negotiate poor economic benefits and security concessions from a position of strength, experts say. The US and South Korean governments have also said the North is preparing to conduct its first nuclear test since September 2017, when it claimed to have detonated a nuclear warhead being developed for its ICBMs.
In the face of growing North Korean threats, Yoon has vowed to strengthen South Korea’s defenses linked to its alliance with the United States, and also strengthen security ties with Japan, which is also alarmed by the North’s nuclear and ballistic weapons program.
South Korea’s relations with Japan have fallen to a post-war low in recent years as the countries allowed their grievances about history to spread to other areas, including trade and military cooperation.
While Yoon calls for future-oriented cooperation with Japan, history can continue to pose an obstacle to relations. The countries are struggling to negotiate a solution after Japanese companies in recent years rejected South Korean court rulings to compensate South Koreans subjected to industrial slavery during the war, an issue that could lead to further diplomatic fractures if it leads to forced sales of companies run local assets.
“In the past we had to free ourselves from the political control of Imperial Japan and defend our freedom. Today, Japan is our partner as we face common threats that challenge the freedom of world citizens,” Yoon said. “As South Korea and Japan move toward a shared future and as the mission adapts to our times based on our shared universal values, it will also help us resolve the historical issues that exist between our two countries.”
While Washington has said it will push for additional sanctions if North Korea conducts another nuclear test, prospects for meaningful punitive action are unclear. China and Russia recently vetoed US-backed UN Security Council resolutions that would have tightened sanctions on the North over its ballistic missile tests earlier this year.
North Korea’s state media said Monday that Kim exchanged messages with Russian President Vladimir Putin and celebrated their strengthening of ties.
Kim said the countries’ ties were forged by Soviet contributions to Japan’s defeat in World War II, and that they increased their “strategic and tactical cooperation and support and solidarity” in the face of enemy military threats. Putin said closer ties between the countries would help bring stability to the region, Korea’s official North Central News Agency said.
North Korea has repeatedly blamed the United States for the crisis in Ukraine, claiming that the West’s “hegemonic policies” justify Russia’s offensive in Ukraine to protect itself.