Future of Northeast Asia

Berlin has been a specially meaningful place to me. 28 years ago, I was sent to Berlin on my first foreign posting as a diplomat. I have vivid memories of looking at the Berlin Wall and feeling a sense of sharing the pain of division. Visiting Berlin now, when it has assumed a new face as the symbol of unity, the emotions I am experiencing are quite different from then.

By Song Min-soon
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade

Berlin has been a specially meaningful place to me. 28 years ago, I was sent to Berlin on my first foreign posting as a diplomat. I have vivid memories of looking at the Berlin Wall and feeling a sense of sharing the pain of division. Visiting Berlin now, when it has assumed a new face as the symbol of unity, the emotions I am experiencing are quite different from then.

At the Inter-Korean Summit last week, one of the issues the two leaders discussed was South Korea's assistance in repairing the expressway connecting Seoul and Pyongyang. This reminded me of the BRD's support for the repair of the Hannover-Berlin Expressways in the late 1970s, which I personally witnessed. The distance between Hannover and Berlin is similar to that between Seoul and Pyongyang. When I saw President Roh walking over the demarcation line, the image was reminiscent of events that took place at Checkpoint Charlie in Berlin in the 1970s and 80s.

Let me start with the North Korean nuclear issue, which is a source of great concern in East Asia as well as in other parts of the world. Some people think that this issue is too complex to be resolved. However, I believe that it will not only be resolved but that it will offer an opportunity for a new peace and security order in Northeast Asia.

Recent progress in the six-party talks has broken new ground as denuclearization moves forward. In September 2005, the Six Parties agreed on a blueprint for a denuclearized Korean Peninsula. In February 2007, the six parties adopted a plan to implement the blueprint. As a result, nuclear facilities in Yongbyon were shut down and IAEA inspectors returned to North Korea. Last week, the Parties reached yet another important milestone by agreeing on how and when to disable these facilities.

Pursuant to the agreement, North Korea will disable three key nuclear facilities in Yongbyon by the end of this year. The North has also committed itself to providing a complete and correct declaration of all its nuclear programs within the year. This declaration will give us the whole picture of all nuclear-related activities and programs in North Korea, which will be the basis for their final dismantlement.

In return, corresponding measures, including economic and energy assistance provided by the five parties, will facilitate the denuclearization process. The United States, in parallel with the DPRK's actions, is expected to fulfill its commitment to North Korea by removing North Korea from its list of state sponsors of terrorism as well as the Trading with the Enemy Act.

As the six-party talks have progressed, great efforts have been made to engage North Korea and to deepen inter-Korean relations. The Inter-Korean summit held in Pyongyang last week was a new landmark effort. At the summit, President Roh Moo-hyun and Chairman Kim Jong-il adopted a Joint Declaration, which highlights important objectives and provides direction for the future of inter-Korean relations.

The Declaration contains several important agreements. The South and the North agreed to work together toward denuclearization by fully implementing the measures outlined in the September 2005 Joint Statement and the February 2007 Agreement. They also recognized the need to establish a permanent peace regime replacing the current armistice. The two Koreas will play a central role in this process. As substantial steps are taken by North Korea towards denuclearization, other directly related parties will join the two Koreas at an appropriate time to consult on initiating the process for a new peace regime on the Korean Peninsula. Given the nature of the North Korean government, such a direct commitment by the top leader deserves special attention.

In the area of economic cooperation, the two sides agreed to create a ``special peace and cooperation zone in the West Sea" with a view to further working on the establishment of a joint fishing ground and maritime peace zone and a special economic zone on land. The Gaeseong Industrial Complex will be expanded as soon as the first-stage operation is completed. All these cooperation projects will be conducted in a mutually beneficial way and thus lay solid groundwork for an eventual inter-Korean economic community.

The progress in denuclearization and the peace process on the Korean Peninsula will in turn open the path for a regional security dialogue in Northeast Asia. It is at this juncture that I look west to the experience of the multilateral security dialogue in Europe. We take a great interest in how the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) paved the way for security cooperation through confidence-building measures over the years.

Given the different backgrounds in the two regions, it would not be appropriate to directly apply the experience of Europe in Northeast Asia. However, if the countries of Northeast Asia aspire to achieve ground for common security and prosperity, they will be able to benefit from the lessons that Europe learned over several decades. Whilst Europe may seem to be far from Northeast Asia geographically, the two regions are becoming increasingly closer.

I am sure that, in the not too distant future, Korea will be connected to Germany through the Trans-Eurasian Railway, comprising the Trans-Korean Railway (TKR) and the Trans-Siberian Railway (TSR) or Trans-China Railway (TCR). I look forward to the day when we will be able to leisurely travel by train from Seoul to Berlin, passing through North Korea and crossing over the Eurasian continent.

The Korea-EU Free Trade Agreement, which is currently under intensive negotiation, is another critical attempt to bring Korea and the EU closer. The FTA will enable the EU to further strengthen ties with the entire region of Northeast Asia.

The closer Asia and Europe get to each other, the greater the role Germany and Korea will be able to play. I ask all of you to render your wholehearted support to ensure that our common efforts do bear fruit.

The article is an excerpt of a speech made by Foreign Affairs and Trade Minster Song Min-soon at the German Council on Foreign Relations in Berlin, Tuesday. . ED.