By Kim Young-jin
The coming of the Park Geun-hye administration is likely to have major implications for engagement with North Korea, the Korean American founder of a joint-venture university in the North said Tuesday.
Kim Chin-kyung, president of the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST), said the atmosphere in the North has changed since the passing of late dictator Kim Jong-il over a year ago, opening opportunities following a dearth of engagement under President Lee Myung-bak, whose term expires next month.
"In some ways the North is a completely new country," said Kim, who accompanied Google chairman Eric Schmidt last week during his high-profile tour of Pyongyang. "It seems (the coming of the new government) could be a big deal.
"The next government should understand the North's current situation as an opportunity to advance inter-Korean relations," he added.
A year since taking power, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for rapprochement between the North and South, echoing Park's stance that the sides need to build trust. However, analysts remain split as to whether this is tactical or if the regime is considering ways to play catch up with its economy.
Experts were also divided over the trip by Schmidt with some saying it was a golden propaganda opportunity for the North's regime. PUST President Kim said Schmidt did not visit the university.
Originally conceived in 2001, the university was supported for a time by the South Korean government, which contributed $1 million for its establishment. But political tensions forced private Christian organizations to pick up the funding slack.
Kim confirmed that PUST would open a campus in Rason, a special economic zone in the country's northeast, in March this year to focus on economics. School officials have said that teachers encounter no difficulties in teaching capitalism at the institution.
It remains unclear how quickly the sides may ramp up engagement, as Park's transition team has yet to clarify how it will handle sanctions imposed on the North, which is threatening to conduct a third nuclear test.
Kim said the sides should not waste time to engage their societies.
"Before political unification there is a need for cultural and emotional unification," he said.
Operated by overseas Koreans and others from around the world, PUST opened its doors in October 2010. The all-male student body comprises of 300 undergraduates handpicked from the country's elite universities as well as 70 graduate students, a number that soon increased to 100. Courses offered include engineering, international finance and management, and agriculture and life sciences. English courses are mandatory..
Officials have also said the school is eager to hire South Korean teachers, though this remains difficult at the moment due to sanctions imposed on the regime by the Lee administration since Pyongyang's 2010 attack on the warship Cheonan.
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| Kim Chin-kyung President of the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology |
Kim Chin-kyung, president of the Pyongyang University of Science and Technology (PUST), said the atmosphere in the North has changed since the passing of late dictator Kim Jong-il over a year ago, opening opportunities following a dearth of engagement under President Lee Myung-bak, whose term expires next month.
"In some ways the North is a completely new country," said Kim, who accompanied Google chairman Eric Schmidt last week during his high-profile tour of Pyongyang. "It seems (the coming of the new government) could be a big deal.
"The next government should understand the North's current situation as an opportunity to advance inter-Korean relations," he added.
A year since taking power, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has called for rapprochement between the North and South, echoing Park's stance that the sides need to build trust. However, analysts remain split as to whether this is tactical or if the regime is considering ways to play catch up with its economy.
Experts were also divided over the trip by Schmidt with some saying it was a golden propaganda opportunity for the North's regime. PUST President Kim said Schmidt did not visit the university.
Originally conceived in 2001, the university was supported for a time by the South Korean government, which contributed $1 million for its establishment. But political tensions forced private Christian organizations to pick up the funding slack.
Kim confirmed that PUST would open a campus in Rason, a special economic zone in the country's northeast, in March this year to focus on economics. School officials have said that teachers encounter no difficulties in teaching capitalism at the institution.
It remains unclear how quickly the sides may ramp up engagement, as Park's transition team has yet to clarify how it will handle sanctions imposed on the North, which is threatening to conduct a third nuclear test.
Kim said the sides should not waste time to engage their societies.
"Before political unification there is a need for cultural and emotional unification," he said.
Operated by overseas Koreans and others from around the world, PUST opened its doors in October 2010. The all-male student body comprises of 300 undergraduates handpicked from the country's elite universities as well as 70 graduate students, a number that soon increased to 100. Courses offered include engineering, international finance and management, and agriculture and life sciences. English courses are mandatory..
Officials have also said the school is eager to hire South Korean teachers, though this remains difficult at the moment due to sanctions imposed on the regime by the Lee administration since Pyongyang's 2010 attack on the warship Cheonan.
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