SK pledges firm action to halt NK nuclear program
Print Edition
SOUTH Korea’s president warned yesterday that North Korea faces collapse if it doesn’t abandon its nuclear bomb program, an unusually strong broadside that will likely infuriate Pyongyang.
President Park Geun-hye, in addressing Parliament to defend the closure of a jointly run factory park in North Korea, said South Korea will take unspecified “stronger and more effective” measures to make North Korea realize its nuclear ambitions will result only in accelerating its “regime collapse.”
Park shut the factory park in response to North Korea’s recent long-range rocket test, which Seoul and Washington see as a test of banned ballistic missile technology. The launch, and Pyongyang’s fourth nuclear test last month, put the country further along its quest for a nuclear-armed missile that could reach the US mainland.
Without elaborating, Park said North Korea had diverted much of the factory workers’ pay to the Pyongyang leadership, which directs its nuclear and missile development.
She also said that South Korea has sent more than US$3 billion in government and civilian aid to its northern neighbor since the mid-1990s.
Much of the aid was made when South Korea was governed by liberal governments seeking rapprochement with North Korea from 1998 to 2003, according to her office.
Park said South Korea must not provide few-strings-attached large-scale aid to North Korea “like in the past.”
She called for support for her government amid a divide in South Korea about its tough response.
“Aiming the point of a sword back at us and splitting us up are things that must not take place,” she said.
South Korea’s main liberal opposition party has criticized the government’s decision to suspend operations at Kaesong, saying the measure will hurt only local business and deepen tensions with North Korea.
Following the rocket launch, Seoul said talks would begin with Washington on deploying a sophisticated US missile defense system in South Korea and that the allies’ military drills in the spring will be the biggest ever.
The US plans to send four F-22 stealth fighter jets to South Korea today in a show of force against North Korea, according to South Korean media reports.
The deployment of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense is opposed by North Korea, China and Russia. Opponents say the system could help US radar spot missiles in other countries.
After meeting with South Korean officials in Seoul, Chinese Vice Foreign Minister Zhang Yesui said he relayed China’s opposition. “China showed its stance against,” he said.
Park’s speech contained harsh language, describing North Korea as “merciless” and under an “extreme reign of terror” following recent “purges of top officials.”
South Korean officials said North Korea was able to divert Kaesong payments because the workers were not paid directly. Instead, US dollars were paid to the North Korean government, according to a statement from Seoul’s’ Unification Ministry on Sunday. North Korea has previously dismissed such views.
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