By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
A progressive war veterans' group Thursday supported President Roh Moo-hyun's remarks last week that the western sea border with North Korea in the West Sea could be redrawn.
The move came a day after conservative groups, led by the Korea Veterans Association, held a massive rally in Seoul to denounce Roh for the controversial remarks.
A week after the summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang in early October, Roh said he does not think the NLL is an official border but an operational redline of the South Korean Navy.
In a joint declaration, Roh and Kim agreed to develop the area around the disputed western sea border into a ``peace zone,'' where a South Korean-backed large-scale industrial complex will be built. The agreement also calls for designating a few joint fishing areas around the border for private vessels from both Koreas.
The President's comments have very significant meaning in resolving the Cold War-era conflict lingering on the Korean Peninsula. We support the president, members of the progressive group said in a statement adopted at a rally in central Seoul.
``We urge the Korea Veterans Association and the group of former defense ministers and generals to stop improper remarks about the president,'' the statement said.
The group said the U.S.-led Untied Nations Command unilaterally drew the NLL at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War with the aim of preventing the South Korean Navy from operating north of the line.
The country's conservative forces are vehemently opposed to the latest inter-Korean pact, arguing the project will eventually neutralize the NLL, which has served as the de facto sea borderline between South and North Korea since the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.
Pyongyang has insisted the line be redrawn. The crab-rich western waters have been a flash point for inter-Korean conflicts. The two navies clashed near the NLL in 1999 and 2000, resulting in scores of casualties and property damages on both sides.
The defense chiefs from the two Koreas are scheduled to hold talks in Pyongyang next month to discuss security issues related to the inter-Korean project.
Defense Minister Kim Jang-soo remains firm on the sea border issue
``I will never concede or open the NLL to North Korea during the upcoming inter-Korean defense ministers' talks. That's not going to happen,'' Kim said during the inspection at the ministry on Wednesday.
``We're firmly controlling the southern part of the NLL,'' Kim said. ``The prerequisite to building a `peace zone' in the area around the West Sea is the principle that the NLL equals the maritime non-aggression demarcation line between the two Koreas.''