“No one can make a decision on military action on the Korean Peninsula without our agreement. The U.S. and President Trump also said, no matter what option they take about North Korea, all decisions will be made after consulting with and getting agreement with the Republic of Korea.”
“I will prevent war at all costs. I want all South Koreans to believe with confidence that there will be no war.”
“U.S. threat of military options aimed at pressuring North Korea is not immediate action.”
“A dialogue between South and North Korea must resume. But we don't need to be impatient. I think lots of effort and time could be necessary to overcome a decade of severed ties and to reopen a dialogue.”
“I would consider that North Korea is crossing a red line if it launches an intercontinental ballistic missile again and weaponizes it by putting a nuclear warhead on top of the missile.”
“Dialogue with North Korea is possible only under the right conditions.”
“What I am stressing is that such historical issues must not be an obstacle to the future-oriented development of Korea-Japan relations. That is why we must deal with historical issues as historical issues and the countries' future-oriented cooperation separately.”
“The plan is to shut down nuclear reactors now in operation after each runs out of their designed lifespan. The government will gradually reduce the number of nuclear reactors one by one while creating new energy sources, such as LNG and renewable energy. It is not a plan that will cause a steep rise in electricity rates.”
“The pledge to time a plebiscite to coincide with next year's local elections remains unchanged.”
“There is no reason why we can't revise it at least for enhanced regional autonomy and fundamental rights, whether (the revision) is pushed through a parliamentary panel or a special government body.”
“The government has already increased tax rates for the largest businesses. It has already announced a plan to enhance tax collection on the highest-income earners. I believe the various welfare policies announced by the government so far can be sufficiently funded by the proposed tax hikes already announced.”
“The plans for tax increases unveiled by the government as of now have been decided to provide the exact amount of additional funds needed by the government.”