In his inaugural speech on Tuesday, South Korea's new President Yoon Suk Yeol vowed an audacious strategy to develop North Korea's economy in exchange for disarmament.
President Yoon Suk Yeol, a conservative from the People Power Party, spoke after being sworn in as the country's newest leader at a ceremony in Seoul, succeeding outgoing President Moon Jae-in.
South Korea Calls For North's Denuclearization
Yoon Suk Yeol described North Korea's nuclear weapons development as a regional threat when speaking before parliament. He noted, though, that the door to conversation and diplomatic settlement remains open, and that he wished to help North Korea improve its living conditions in exchange for more security.
He went on to say that denuclearization will help to bring enduring peace and prosperity to the Korean Peninsula and beyond. Yoon Suk Yeol pledged to take a harsher position on North Korea during his election campaign, a break from Moon's strategy, which has constantly championed peaceful reunification.
Yoon Suk Yeol, on the other hand, has stated that sanctions would not be eased or a peace treaty prepared until the North makes active efforts in full and verifiable disarmament and that he will develop a formidable military force capable of deterring any aggression.
Tensions between the two Koreas have lately risen due to an increase in North Korean missile launches. North Korea launched a short-range ballistic missile on Saturday, the 14th missile test this year and the second this week, CNN reported.
South Korea Opens Door For Talks With North
As he approaches office, Yoon Suk Yeol, 61, will have two big challenges: a hostile North Korea developing new weapons, and inflation, which threatens to derail an economic recovery from two years of COVID-19 doom.
He's taken a harder stance on North Korea, threatening a preemptive strike if there's any evidence of an impending attack and promising to beef up the South's deterrent power. His address, though, was perceived to be more focused on his desire to restart stalled denuclearization discussions with Pyongyang.
Yoon Suk Yeol did not go into detail about his strategy to re-engage the North or give economic incentives. However, during the election campaign, his national security advisor, Kim Sung-han, told Reuters that the Yoon government would design a plan in the coming days that would allow Pyongyang to rapidly get sanctions relief or economic help in exchange for denuclearisation measures.
Yoon may confront a security crisis if North Korea conducts its first nuclear test in five years, as US and South Korean officials have warned, following the country's violation of a 2017 ban on long-range missile testing in March.
Yoon Suk Yeol was elected on a promise of eliminating corruption and leveling the economic playing field despite growing public dissatisfaction with inequality and rising housing costs, as well as simmering gender and generational conflict.
Last month, South Korea's inflation hit a more than 13-year high as a result of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, which drove up commodity prices and raised anticipation of future central bank interest rate hikes, potentially jeopardizing economic prospects, as per Reuters.
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Yoon Suk Yeol Faces Several Problems
Yoon Suk Yeol, who previously promised a tougher stance on North Korea, avoided tough words during his inaugural speech amid growing worries that the North is preparing for its first nuclear bomb test in nearly five years.
Yoon also tackled the country's rising economic issues, claiming that deteriorating job markets and a widening wealth disparity are creating a democratic crisis by igniting internal turmoil and discontent and encouraging the growth of anti-intellectualism as people lose their feeling of community and belonging.
Yoon Suk Yeol won the March 9 election on a vow to enhance South Korea's 70-year military alliance with the US and build up its missile capabilities to counter North Korean threats.
North Korea has tested a slew of nuclear-capable missiles in recent months that could hit South Korea, Japan, and the US mainland. Pyongyang appears to be attempting to frighten Yoon's new government by updating its military arsenals and lobbying the Biden administration to ease sanctions against the North, according to the Washington Post.
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