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| People watch a TV showing an image of Jo Song-gil, the North Korea's former ambassador to Italy, right, during a news program at the Seoul Railway Station in Seoul, South Korea, Wednesday. AP-Yonhap |
By Do Je-hae
The alleged defection to South Korea of a ranking North Korean diplomat who went missing in 2018 during his tour of duty in Rome is raising concerns about its impact on inter-Korean relations, which have already hit an all-time low in recent months.
According to a local broadcaster's report late Tuesday, Jo Song-gil, Pyongyang's former acting ambassador to Italy, entered South Korea in July 2019 and has settled here under the protection of the authorities. Rep. Ha Tae-keung of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) who serves on the National Assembly Intelligence Committee, confirmed this in a Facebook post later in the day, while ruling Democratic Party of Korea Rep. Jeon Hae-cheol, the chief of the committee, acknowledged it Wednesday.
The National Intelligence Service and other relevant organizations have refused to confirm Jo's entry into South Korea. However, the media here are highlighting Jo as the rare case of a high-level diplomatic official from the North defecting to the South. Jo is being compared to Rep. Tae Yong-ho of the PPP, who arrived in South Korea with his family in 2016 after serving as a minister at the North Korean Embassy in London. When Jo's disappearance from Rome made headlines in 2018, Tae publicly called on Jo to join him in South Korea.
It is noticeable that there is a huge difference in Seoul's reaction to the defection of the two diplomats. In August 2016, the Ministry of Unification officially announced Tae's arrival. But if reports about Jo are correct, the Moon administration, which has prioritized engagement with North Korea, has been completely silent on him coming to the South.
Some critics are therefore saying that the leaking of Jo's entry to the broadcaster was politically motivated to cause further damage to Moon's push for a peace process on the Korean Peninsula, which has already been damaged significantly by a series of unfortunate developments ― Pyongyang's demolition of an inter-Korean liaison office in the border city of Gaeseong in the North, and the shooting death of a South Korean maritime official by North Korean military personnel Sept. 22 near the maritime border between the two countries.
Some analysts say that while Jo's defection may not have a direct and immediate effect on inter-Korean relations, it could act as an additional factor in hurting Moon's constant efforts to revive a momentum for peace on the peninsula, as highlighted by his proposal at the United Nations General Assembly last month for an official declaration to end the 1950-53 Korean War.
"Inter-Korea relations are at an all-time low, proving that South Korean policy alone cannot significantly improve the deadlock in South-North relations. Under these circumstances, the public disclosure of the defection of a North Korean diplomat presents threats to further erode public support for the Moon government's policy toward North Korea and its initiatives for an end of war declaration, and impede bipartisan cooperation on the North Korean issue," a North Korea studies expert told The Korea Times on condition of anonymity.
"In addition, the public disclosure of such figures and the possibility of political maneuvering to get such defectors to support a certain political and ideological position in South Korean politics could derail the government's policies for peace and reconciliation with the North."
Some experts say Jo's defection could possibly upset the North Korea regime and make things for worse for inter-Korean relations. Ahead of an important landmark event for its ruling Workers' Party on the upcoming weekend, Pyongyang has remained silent on Seoul's call for a joint investigation into the killing of the South Korean official.
"Rep. Tae has called on North Korean diplomats to abandon the Kim regime and join him in South Korea to actively work for unification," Leif-Eric Easley, associate professor of international studies at Ewha Womans University, told The Korea Times. "Jo has remained out of the public eye, likely because of concern for his family. Renewed attention to Jo's defection is not what the Kim regime wants immediately before the Workers' Party 75th Anniversary celebrations."
Jo disappeared in early November 2018, and had been widely reported to be seeking asylum in a third country. In February last year, it was found that his teenage daughter, who could not escape with her parents, was repatriated to North Korea.
