President Roh Moo-hyun, left, shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il before their summit talks at the Baekhwawon State Guest House in Pyongyang, Wednesday. They will issue a statement this morning on their talks. / Joint Press Corps

North Korea's Kim Jong-il Skeptical Over Market-Opening, Economic Reform

Joint Press Corps, Yoon Won-sup, Jung Sung-ki and Kim Yon-se
Staff Reporters

PYONGYANG _ President Roh Moo-hyun and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il shared a broad consensus on establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula in their two rounds of talks here Wednesday.

President Roh, however, said in a meeting with South Korean journalists that Kim showed skepticism over his country's market-opening and economic reform.

Roh and Kim will announce a joint declaration this morning to sum up the three-day summit.

``We agreed to make a firm commitment to achieving peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula,'' Roh told the South Korean Joint Press Corps during a luncheon at Okryugwan, a restaurant famous for North Korea's cold noodles, following two hours of talks with Kim in the morning. ``We shared the need to map out our measures for Korean peace for the future.'' But he was not specific on the details.

Roh said he had felt a ``wall of distrust'' between the South and the North during the talks.

He said that Kim appeared to distrust the South on some points and rejected discussing issues of economic reform in the North and market opening, adding that developing mutual trust would take time and the South Korean people should be patient.

Roh added that there exists a perception gap between the two Koreas, citing as an example the Gaeseong Industrial Complex where North Korean workers are employed by South Koreans to manufacture goods.

``We evaluate the Gaeseong Industrial Complex as a successful project and a good example of reform and an open North Korea, but that is just our perception. We need to respect the North's view on this also,'' he noted.

Roh described the two rounds of talks as fruitful, presidential spokesman Cheon Ho-seon said, quoting the President as saying, ``I'm satisfied with the outcome of the talks.''

Cheon said that after the official summit talks between the two leaders ended, working-level discussions continued in order to produce a joint declaration similar to the one made at the 2000 summit.

To create a peace mechanism on the Korean Peninsula, the joint declaration will likely call for joint efforts to officially end the 1950-53 Korean War and replace the current armistice with a peace treaty.

The leaders are also expected to agree on a set of measures to reduce military tension, as well as ways to expand cross-border business projects.

South Korean officials present at the summit talks were Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance and Economy Kwon O-kyu, Unification Minister Lee Jae-joung, National Intelligence Service Director Kim Man-bok and Baek Jong-chun, chief presidential secretary for foreign and security policy.

Kim Jong-il attended the discussion only with Kim Yang-gon, the director of the United Front Department of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party.

Meanwhile, Kim proposed during the second round of talks at the Baekhwawon State Guest House that Roh extend his stay in Pyongyang one day until the morning of Oct. 5, but later withdrew the proposal. South Korean officials accompanying Roh said they interpreted Kim's proposal as his intention to carry out the summit talks more sincerely to produce substantial results.

Unlike their first encounter Tuesday, the leaders were smiling and appeared in good humor.

In response to Roh's thanks for Kim's unscheduled greeting in a welcoming ceremony at the April 25 House of Culture, Kim said, ``The President comes (from the South) and I couldn't stay at home idle since I am not patient.''

Roh and his entourage watched the controversial ``Arirang'' performance, the mass gymnastic show later in the day, with Kim Yong-nam, President of the Presidium of the North's Supreme People's Assembly,

The show, aimed at promoting the Stalinist country's propaganda including its military-first policy, was modified for the South Korean audience with some content being removed.

Due to rain in Pyongyang, Roh delayed planting a ``tree of peace'' there until today.

yoonwonsup@koreatimes.co.kr
gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr