{"id":2203304,"date":"2024-01-01T08:00:56","date_gmt":"2023-12-31T23:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2203304"},"modified":"2024-01-01T00:59:30","modified_gmt":"2023-12-31T15:59:30","slug":"north-korean-leader-rejects-reconciliation-reunification-with-south-korea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2024\/01\/north-korean-leader-rejects-reconciliation-reunification-with-south-korea\/","title":{"rendered":"North Korean leader rejects reconciliation, reunification with South Korea"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">North Korean leader Kim Jong Un <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/2023\/12\/north-korea-pledges-to-launch-three-more-spy-satellites-in-2024\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">redefined<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> South Korea as a hostile nation on Saturday during the country\u2019s week-long plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers\u2019 Party, according to a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/kcnawatch.xyz\/newstream\/1704008138-62431980\/%EC%A1%B0%EC%84%A0%EB%A1%9C%EB%8F%99%EB%8B%B9-%EC%A4%91%EC%95%99%EC%9C%84%EC%9B%90%ED%9A%8C-%EC%A0%9C8%EA%B8%B0-%EC%A0%9C9%EC%B0%A8%EC%A0%84%EC%9B%90%ED%9A%8C%EC%9D%98-%ED%99%95%EB%8C%80%ED%9A%8C\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">report<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> in the party daily <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rodong Sinmun<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Kim\u2019s comments indicate a bleak outlook for inter-Korean relations, as he described the two Koreas as \u201ctwo hostile countries in a state of war.\u201d This marks a departure from North Korea&#8217;s usual description of South Korea as part of the same but divided nation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kim emphasized that discussing reunification is inappropriate, referring to South Korea as \u201ca colonial puppet of the United States.\u201d He hinted that he would not seek better relations with the South, regardless of its political leadership. Kim faulted all South Korean administrations, both liberal and conservative, for adhering to the idea of \u201cunification under a liberal democracy.\u201d Kim stated that North Korea will launch three new military reconnaissance satellites in 2024 to \u201cpowerfully drive the development of space science and technology.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Why It Matters<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Kim Jong Un\u2019s declaration that he will not seek reconciliation with the South, even if progressives retake the presidency, is a significant blow to the main opposition Democratic Party (DP). The DP, which pursued <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/2018\/09\/moon-jae-in-arrives-in-pyongyang-for-third-summit-with-kim-jong-un\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">d\u00e9tente<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> with the North under previous Democratic presidents, issued a <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/theminjoo.kr\/main\/sub\/news\/view.php?brd=11&amp;post=1201494\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">statement<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> condemning Kim\u2019s remarks and held the Yoon administration responsible for the worsening ties. President Yoon Suk-yeol has advocated \u201c<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/2023\/07\/yoon-faults-unification-ministry-for-acting-like-north-korea-aid-agency\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">peace through strength<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d and criticized former President Moon Jae-in\u2019s approach as having delivered a \u201c<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nknews.org\/2023\/10\/yoon-spars-with-predecessor-criticizing-fake-peace-with-nuclear-north-korea\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">fake peace<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.\u201d Kim\u2019s stance negates a key distinction the DP has made against the ruling People Power Party, which will likely use his remarks to vindicate Yoon\u2019s hardline approach and justify <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/12\/seouls-ambitious-five-year-defense-plan-confronts-difficult-financial-realities\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">increased defense spending<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">However, this geopolitical posturing will unlikely sway the upcoming April parliamentary elections. Although recent <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gallup.co.kr\/gallupdb\/reportContent.asp?seqNo=1444\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Gallup Korea polls<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> indicate that South Korean voters are concerned with the Yoon administration\u2019s foreign policy, more South Koreans are focused on economic performance, with 56% expressing worries that the economy will worsen next year. Political fractures within the major parties have also emerged as a key focal point. The splintering of the People Power Party and the Democratic Party, with former leaders <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/how-former-ruling-party-leader-plans-to-disrupt-south-koreas-upcoming-elections\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lee Jun-seok<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/07\/green-tie-politics-a-former-prime-ministers-return-ripples-through-south-korea\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lee Nak-yon<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> hinting at forming new conservative and progressive parties, respectively, highlights a shift in voter concerns away from inter-Korean relations toward internal political dynamics and economic governance.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-tags\"><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/defense-security\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Defense &amp; Security<\/span><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/domestic-politics\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Domestic Politics<\/span><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/inter-korean-foreign-relations\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Inter-Korean &amp; Foreign Relations<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>North Korean leader Kim Jong Un redefined South Korea as a hostile nation on Saturday during the country\u2019s week-long plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers\u2019 Party, according to a report in the party daily Rodong Sinmun. Kim\u2019s comments indicate a bleak outlook for inter-Korean relations, as he described the two Koreas as [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10407,"featured_media":2203305,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[26,27,28],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v21.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>North Korean leader rejects reconciliation, reunification with South Korea - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2024\/01\/north-korean-leader-rejects-reconciliation-reunification-with-south-korea\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"North Korean leader rejects reconciliation, reunification with South Korea - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"North Korean leader Kim Jong Un redefined South Korea as a hostile nation on Saturday during the country\u2019s week-long plenary meeting of the Central Committee of the Workers\u2019 Party, according to a report in the party daily Rodong Sinmun. 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