열린장관실

Building a Framework for Peace and Security in Northeast Asia
Why should it be the key to common prosperity in the region as a whole?

H. E. Song Min-soon
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade
Republic of Korea

At a Luncheon Meeting
Co-hosted by the Council on Foreign Relations,
The Korea Society and The Asia Society

September 26, 2007
New York City
President Haass,
Your Excellency Ambassador Bosworth,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

I am honored to be here today at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR), a leading institution in the field of foreign policy.  I would like to thank President Haass and the members of the Council for providing me this valuable opportunity to speak before such eminent audience.   

Through its research and policy recommendations, the CFR has made a significant contribution to the study of Northeast Asia.  It has also been instrumental in promoting Korean-US relations.  As I understand it, the Council has recently embarked on a new project on regional security architecture, focusing on Northeast Asia.  I trust that this initiative will contribute to the development of a practical and viable vision for the region.

Today, I would like to share with you my views on the current security situation in Northeast Asia surrounding the North Korean nuclear issue.  I will also discuss on the peace building process in the region as represented by the Six-Party Talks as well as on the topic of how Korea and the US can work together to enhance security in the region.

Northeast Asia is a region known for its dynamic economies as well as the complexity of its political and security situation.  The combined economies of the Republic of Korea, Japan and China  make up the third largest in the world, following only the European Union and NAFTA.  According to economic projections, the production of these Northeast Asian economies will catch up with that of the EU within a decade or two.

Despite its economic dynamism, Northeast Asia faces a number of problems in political and security areas.  They include the North Korean nuclear issue, cross-Straits relations, territorial disputes, controversies over history and national rivalries that present the growing potential for an arms race. Furthermore, the lack of institutionalized dialogue and cooperation hinders the forging of durable peace and security in the region. 

Among these problems, the most urgent is the North Korean nuclear challenge.  Considering its gravity in regional geopolitics, as well as its implications for global nuclear non-proliferation, an early and peaceful resolution of the North Korean nuclear problem is imperative for all of us.

At the same time, the process of resolving this challenge presents us a major opportunity to build lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula and in the region.  History teaches us that crises can be transformed into opportunities through creative efforts and bold initiatives.  A strategic approach must be taken, and this is the right time to do so.

Distinguished guests,

The North Korean nuclear problem and the security situation in Northeast Asia should be addressed through a multi-track approach.  The first track is for  the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula through the resolution of the North Korean nuclear problem; the second is for the establishment of a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula through the deepening of inter-Korean ties and the normalization of relations between the US and North Korea;  and the third is to generate a Northeast Asia Peace and Security  Dialogue that goes beyond the resolution of the North Korean nuclear issue.

These three tracks are closely interrelated.  I order to resolve the North Korean nuclear problem, the broad security environment on  the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia must be taken into account.  A comprehensive approach is necessary, in which the three tracks are addressed in tandem with the North Korean nuclear issue at the center.

Let me start with the first track, the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.

The Six-Party Talks are the principal vehicle for addressing this issue.  The 2005 Joint Statement and the 2007 Agreement on Initial Actions Agreement present the basic framework for the peaceful resolution of this problem.

A new round of the Six-Party Talks will start tomorrow in Beijing.  This time, the parties will aim at adopting an implementation plan to disable North Korea’s nuclear facilities by the end of this year.  The focal point is the scope and timeline of the disablement and the corresponding political and economic measures to be taken by the other parties, particularly in the context of the normalization of US-North Korea relations.    North Korean nuclear facilities must be disabled in a way that makes it very difficult to reverse the process and bring them back into operation.  It should also be noted at this point that relations between North Korea and Japan need to be improved.

On the second track, a peace regime will be established to  formally end the state of war and to secure peace on the Korean Peninsula.  This process will involve the deepening of inter-Korean relations as well as the normalization of US-North Korea ties.  With progress in this process, the armistice on the Korean Peninsula regime will be replaced by a  peace arrangement.

Inter-Korean relations will be brought up to a higher level with the Summit Meeting to be held in Pyongyang next week between President Roh Moo-hyun and Chairman Kim Jong-il.  The Summit will first of all aim at consolidating peace on the Korean Peninsula.  North Korea will be encouraged to move forward on the path to denuclearization.  The Summit will be a good occasion to give North Korea a better understanding of what benefits it will get as progress is made on denuclarization.  The leaders will also discuss how to establish a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula at an early date.

In the same vein, the leaders will explore ways to increase mutual trust through political and military confidence-building measures (CBMs), as well as ways to lay the groundwork for an eventual inter-Korean economic community.

As President Bush made it clear, Washington is also ready to have a normal relationship with Pyongyang once the nuclear issue is resolved.  It is evident that the more progress is made at the Six-Party Talks, the closer the normalization of US-North Korea ties will become to reality.

Meaningful improvements in inter-Korean and US-North Korean relations will signify that substantive change can take place in the Korean armistice.  As progress is being made toward the disabling of North Korea’s nuclear facilities by the end of this year, I expect that negotiations for a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula will be launched accordingly.

On the third track, a  multilateral security mechanism dialogue in Northeast Asia is a pressing necessity.  With progress in denuclearization, the groundwork for such a dialogue is being laid.  The nations in the region are currently working within the context of the Six-Party Talks to identify common denominators for regional security.  These include a set of guiding principles for peace and security in Northeast Asia, that will lead to a more comprehensive security dialogue in the future.

Distinguished guests,

The goals we pursue on these three tracks are shared by Korea and the United States and form the basis for a stronger Korea-US alliance.  The two countries have worked together from the early stages to formulate action plans to achieve these goals. For example, the "common and broad approach," which envisaged a comprehensive road map to resolve the North Korean nuclear problem, was jointly worked out by the two Presidents in September last year.

Korea and the US have been successfully realigning the alliance to make it more suitable to reach the goals and vision we share.  US military bases in Korea are being consolidated and the 2nd Infantry Division of the US Army will be relocated from the DMZ area to Pyeongtaek, about 50 miles south of Seoul, not north of Seoul.  The Yongsan military base will be moved there as well.  With the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) in 2012, the Korean military will assume the main responsibility for guarding the DMZ and defending the country.  The US Forces in Korea (USFK), while maintaining their primary role of supporting Korean defense, will also be more able to enhance regional stability.

Such changes would be consistent with both the Korean people’s aspiration for their future and the strategic objectives of the US in the region, which involves maintaining and strengthening the peace and stability of Northeast Asia in political, security and economic terms.  The foundations of the Korea-US alliance will be further expanded and consolidated as we conclude the Korea-US Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and Korea begins its participation in the US Visa Waiver Program (VWP).

The Korea-US FTA was negotiated on the basis of economic logic.  A wide range of benefits are expected from the FTA.   They are increased trade and investment, the opening of the services market, and enhanced productivity and efficiency among others.  A balance of interests has been struck between the two countries.  At the same time, the strategic implications of the FTA for both Korea and the US, as well as for the region as a whole, should not go unnoticed.  The FTA will have the effect of upgrading the alliance to a higher level, as Korea and the US take on even greater interdependence in every area.

Early this month, the Korean government submitted the FTA to the National Assembly and is endeavoring to obtain its approval as soon as possible.  We hope that the US Congress will also do its part at an early date.

Ladies and gentlemen,

The shared values of democracy and market economy, Korea’s strategic location, and its growing responsibilities in global affairs have made the Korea-US alliance closer than ever before.

Our two countries are cooperating to resolve not only issues concerning the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia, but also many global problems.  Iraq, Afghanistan and Lebanon are just a few examples where the US and Korea are working together for peace, stability and reconstruction.

At the core of Korea-US cooperation today lie the efforts to resolve the North Korean nuclear problem.  The early and peaceful resolution of this issue will open a new horizon for Northeast Asia’s security, political and economic future.  It will also serve as a useful example of a negotiated solution for similar problems in other parts of the world, including those in the Middle East.  At the same time, it will provide great momentum in strengthening the NPT regime, which is often said to be at a crossroads and facing multiple challenges.

What we are dealing with today is a grave potential crisis that could be and should be turned into an opportunity.  Whether we seize the opportunity or let it pass is on our shoulders.  As for me, I believe in our collective wisdom.
As an ancient Asian historian once said, "great actions do not wait for petty scruples, abundant virtue does not trouble with niceties."  This is the time for us to have a broadest view and take bold and strategic actions.  This is the time to remind ourselves that it is the war, not the battles, that we should win.

In realizing these endeavors, that is, resolving the North Korean nuclear problem, establishing a peace regime on the Korean Peninsula, and  creating a Northeast Asia security dialogue, public support is indispensable.  

Institutes like the Council on Foreign Relations, as leaders of public opinion, thus have an important role to play.  I am sincerely grateful for your wisdom, insight and devotion to these important tasks.

Thank you.