Following is the full text of the opening remarks delivered by Lim Dong-won, chairman of Organizing Committee on the Event to Commemorating the June 15 South-North Joint Declaration, on the occasion of the 8th anniversary of the inter-Korean summit between President Kim Dae-jung and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jung-il in 2000. ― Ed.
Honorable former President Kim Dae-jung and Madame Lee Hee-ho, Unification Minister Kim Ha-joong, leaders from all walks of life, diplomatic delegates, distinguished guests, and 100 netizens who are specially invited today. I wholeheartedly welcome all of you.
Especially, I extend my gratitude to Dr. Bruce Cumings, Dr. Wada Haruki, and Dr. Paik Nak-chung, who will deliver lectures tonight.
Tonight, we have gathered to congratulate the eighth anniversary of the June 15 South-North Joint Declaration. Eight years ago, President Kim Dae-jung and Chairman Kim Jung-il declared three things in front of 7,000 Koreans and the whole world as follows:
First, let us accept that another war will be the end of the people of Korea and peacefully coexist.
Second, let us realize peaceful unification gradually, stage by stage.
Third, let us build mutual trust through exchange and cooperation.
In the past, agreements between two Koreas existed only in writing without much implementation. However, for the first time, agreements stated in the June 15 Joint Declaration were actually implemented one by one. Over the past eight years, remarkable progresses have been made in inter-Korean relations: Gaesung industrial complex, Mt. Gumgang tour, reunions of separated families, and human and economic exchanges between two Koreas. Accordingly, trust was developed, hostility faded, and tension was relieved.
Now, the prospect of resolving North Korean nuclear issue, which once was blocking the development of inter-Korean relations, also looks brighter. North Korea's nuclear declaration and the U.S. removal of North Korea from the State Sponsors of Terrorism List are just around the corner. Then, the US-DPRK relations will also be able to be normalized. Recently, talks between North Korea and Japan have also begun. Conditions surrounding the Korean peninsula are changing favorably.
In such circumstances, it is regrettable that the inter-Korean relations are going sour under the new administration. Based on the achievement we have made through exchange and cooperation over the past eight years, two Koreas should pursue dialogue and cooperation. We should not go back to the era of hostility and confrontation. The new government has to demonstrate its firm determination to respect and implement the June 15 Joint Declaration.
I express special gratitude to President Kim Dae-jung, the very architect of 2000 Inter-Korean Summit. I appreciate and respect efforts made by President Kim who, despite sufferings and persecutions, has devoted himself for peaceful coexistence, reconciliation, and cooperation of two Koreas.
I also thank all members of the Organizing Committee, members of the Kim Dae-jung Peace Center, and those who planned tonight's congratulatory performance. I wish all the best to every participant who has joined us here tonight. I hope all of you will appreciate the great lectures by world-renowned scholars and enjoy the dinner and performance.