Q&A Protest is 'important part of democracy'
U.S. Ambassador to Korea Mark Lippert speaks during an interview at Habib House in central Seoul, Tuesday. / Korea Times photo by Shim Hyun-chul
By Rachel Lee
The following is the transcript of an interview The Korea Times and its sister paper Hankook Ilbo had with outgoing U.S. Ambassador Mark Lippert.
Q. President-elect Donald Trump appears to be mending ties with Russia to stymie China’s growth. Don’t you think that’s the right policy to keep Pax Americana alive at least for a while?
A. I am not a Russia policy expert and really do not have much to say. We are very concerned about their actions in Ukraine and other activities like the issue of the hacking. I do not want to comment on Russia, other than to say, there was a time in the relationship early with the Barack Obama administration, the two sides were working constructively together. Recent actions of Russians are well documented. Our opposition to those actions are well documented. I really don’t want to speculate what Trump may do or may not do in respect to Russia.
Q. THAAD is a thorny issue. But the cost is too much for Korea as Lotte is balking at the land exchange deal for the THAAD deployment because its subsidiaries in China are under pressure. Would reconsidering the deployment affect the ROK-U.S. alliance negatively?
A. The root of the difficult position is a dramatically growing nuclear missile program by North Korea.
That is in violation of countless Security Council resolutions and international law. The [South] Koreans then took the decision in consultation with their ally United States, who has obligations to protect and defend the peninsula, to deploy the defensive system, aimed only at protecting the Korean population and this country from that threat posed by North Korea.
And that’s a sovereign decision for the Republic of Korea and we just asked our Chinese friends that rather than impose punitive measures on South Korean companies for the government’s decision, their [should be remembered that it is] their sovereign right and their most important responsibility to protect its people. We would hope that Chinese friends would persuade their ally the North Koreans to roll back their illegal, very dangerous nuclear missile program. That should be resolved.
For the nuclear missile programs to be rolled back and ultimately eliminated, that’s the ultimate root of the issue. And that’s the ultimate solution to this issue over time. It’s only proved that the United States and the Republic of Korea bring the best defensive systems to protect the people of this nation.
Q. Is one THAAD battery enough to cover the entire southern part of the Korean Peninsula?
A. It’s part of the solution. Missile defence is a comprehensive solution that you need low-altitude defence and high-altitude defence, and you need conventional forces. Ultimately, all three pieces need to be put together to give you as much protection as possible. And what you do over time is to stick it in and enhance the missile defence, and that’s a big important part of a missile defence system that would be layered in Korea because it gives you multiple shots at hitting the missile all the way down.
It’s very necessary and important, and that’s precisely why the THAAD batteries of the United States are in demand all over the world. A huge demand for THAAD batteries, and we put them where the threat is the greatest. It’s not political purposes, it’s not for economic reasons, it’s threat only. Because we only have a very few number of them and every global combat commander will tell you _ “I need missile defence and I need THAAD batteries.”
Q. Is THAAD part of the U.S. national missile defence system?
A. Absolutely not. It’s only designed for the Korean Peninsula. That’s the sole purpose of the THAAD battery. That’s precisely why it’s useful here; it does not tie in the national defence system. If we wanted to build more national missile defence, we would build more national defence in Japan and Guam. This is all about the Korean Peninsula. This has nothing to do with our national missile defence system.
Q. President Park Geun-hye visited you in the hospital as the first thing she did upon returning home after her overseas trip. Did it surprise you or strike you as odd?
A. I never experienced a knife attack before in my life, so I didn’t really know what to expect. I had no expectations and had no way of judging what is or is not inappropriate so it was an incredibly nice gesture.
And I received a number of very warm personal messages from President Park but also all members of the political spectrum. There were members of the Minjoo Party of Korea who came to see me and members of the Saenuri Party who came to see me. It’s not really about politics at that point. It’s the basic bond and connections we have as human beings.
The support I received from the Korean government officials, American government officials and people in Korea was extraordinary and deeply meaningful. I always wondered if my friends were shot or hurt in Iraq and Afghanistan, does it really make any difference if I visit or if I show support or send an email. Having experienced that support, it makes a huge difference. It boosts your spirit. It makes you recover faster. And it’s something I will never forget.
Q. Do you agree that President Park Geun-hye is wrongly accused in the recent scandal?
A. This is for Korean democracy and the Korean people to decide. This is what the essence of Korean democratic intuitions do. It’s up to the National Assembly under the Constitution to make a judgement and they made that judgement, and now it’s up to the court to make the judgement. These are the decisions that Koreans decide as they do as a sovereign country.
Q. You were seen walking your dog one Saturday near a candlelit protest. Was it an act of checking out the protest?
A. What happened that day was I walked my dog. I went out for a walk with my dog and there was a picture of me that went in the newspapers. I live incredibly closely to Gwanghwamun. I was there early before the formal kickoff.
Q. Candlelit vigils have occupied downtown Seoul every Saturday for weeks. Some foreign correspondents in Seoul view the protests as one big case of a waste of candlelight, going back on the process of democratization. They blame the breakdown not just on the President, but on the political circles that failed to respond to the public wishes. Do you agree?
A. Americans also demonstrate, not on a routine basis, but when they feel strongly about issues. You go to Washington; people walk around and have rallies around the mall, peaceful demonstrations within the contours of, within great traditions of civic demonstrations, and those are an important part of democracy.
Q. Barack Obama called the use of comfort women a shocking act by Japan and a blatant human rights violation. Would you confirm Obama’s position on the comfort women issue?
A. It underscores the way that the United States feels about the issue. We view this historical issue as very important and need to be resolved between the Republic of Korea and Japan. But ultimately these two countries need to have discussions to work out this issue. At the end of the day ultimately the United States can encourage, but we don’t mediate and we don’t pressure for an outcome.
What we do is get both sides to try to resolve these very difficult, very tough, very complex historical issues in a way that promotes peace and reconciliation in East Asia and around the world.