South Korean Senior Official Discusses Korean Peninsula’s Nuclear Crisis at AUC

By: Maydaa Abo El-Nadar

Cairo, Jan. 17 (SEE) – The American University in Cairo (AUC) hosted on Wednesday the South Korean President’s Advisor for Unification and National Security Affairs Chung-in Moon is on a three-day visit to Egypt.

During the visit, he met Fayza Aboul Naga, President Sisi’s Advisor for national security. He also spoke about the nuclear crisis in the Korean Peninsula on Wednesday at AUC. The event was celebrated a day before a North Korean delegation's visit to Washington, USA.

The event was attended by prestigious figures including South Korea’s Ambassador Yoon Yeocheol; Japan’s Ambassador Masaki Noke; Singaporean Ambassador Premjith Sadasivan; Norwegian Ambassador Sten Rosnes; Finland’s Ambassador Laura Kansikas, former Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Nabil Fahmy; Head of the Korean-Egyptian Friendship Association Alaa Fahmy; and former Cairo’s Governor Galal Al Saeed.

Here are some excerpts from Moon’s speech:

According to the reports presented by the South Korean Intelligence Service, analyzing the attitude of North Korean President Kim Jung-un, he is escalating the conflict with the USA. This is the reason behind South Korea not escalating the issue. It was a correct step as afterwards, Jung-in expressed that both Koreas have to solve their problems without a third country –USA- being involved.

In 2017, despite North Korea’s provocative acts, including conducting six hydrogen bomb tests, South Korea was seeking peaceful methods to calm the situation. However, North Korea continued its provocative acts, so South Korea was concerned.

On the other hand, meeting between USA’s President Donald Trump and Jung-in, at 2018 Singapore Summit was unique and successful, as both parts agreed to work towards peace process, opening a new page based on trust, nuclear disarmament, withdrawing the rest of the American soldiers from North Korea.

To assure nuclear disarmament, the USA insisted on inspecting nuclear facilities in North Korea that refused this inspection, unless the USA would remove the international sanctions applied against her. South Korea then intervened and an agreement was signed to: remove landmines, abandon nuclear weapon in the Korean Peninsula, implement the family reunification’s initiative; and launch a railway line between both countries.

Moon expressed his satisfaction about South Korea’s way of solving the issue during 2018, as it was launching peace negotiations with North Korea, adding that, it is difficult to solve a 70-year-old problem in one year.

Currently, South Korean old generations are refusing peace with their neighboring country. On the other hand, later generations are supporting peace, considering both countries as a one nation, and seeing that both share historical, cultural and linguistic ties.