The fact that North Korea’s Workers’ Party General Secretary Kim Jong-un sent a message of condolences to Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida regarding the earthquake damage on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture was intended to promote dialogue with Japan and bring balance to the Korea-U.S.-Japan structure. The analysis came out.
Seo Bo-hyuk, a researcher at the Korea Institute for National Unification, made this claim in the online series ‘Background and Implications of Kim Jong-un’s Japan Earthquake Letter’ published on the 9th.
It is considered very unusual for North Korea to send a letter of condolences in the name of its supreme leader regarding a natural disaster in Japan, which has an ‘enemy relationship’ with it. At the 9th Plenary Meeting of the 8th Central Committee of the Workers’ Party announced at the end of last year, North Korea criticized the trilateral cooperation system between Korea, the United States, and Japan and called Japan a “pawn” and a “loyal dog” of the United States’ hostile policy toward North Korea.
Although North Korea has sent letters consoling Japan over large-scale natural disasters in the past, this is the first time that a supreme leader has sent a letter to Japan’s prime minister. In particular, Secretary General Kim Jong-un used the respectful title ‘Your Excellency’ towards Prime Minister Kishida.
Commissioner Seo believed that North Korea is making various military provocations against South Korea while pursuing dialogue with Japan, aiming to weaken the trilateral military cooperation between Korea, the United States, and Japan. Commissioner Seo interpreted this as showing the intention to promote North Korea-Japan dialogue on humanitarian issues by stimulating the Kishida administration, which needs a change of pace due to falling approval ratings.
North Korea self-evaluated that its grain production reached 103% of its goal at the end of last year, but it is estimated that about 40% of its residents still do not have a normal diet. Therefore, Commissioner Seo’s analysis is that external economic support is needed to encourage residents to achieve the goals of the five-year economic development plan (2021-2025).
Commissioner Seo believed that the fact that the Kishida Cabinet had opened the door to dialogue with North Korea to resolve the abductee issue may have also influenced Secretary General Kim’s decision to send the letter. There were also media reports that North Korea and Japan had two closed contacts in third countries in the first half of last year.
At the plenary meeting held at the end of last year to establish this year’s state affairs plan, Secretary General Kim stated the principles of foreign policy, saying, “We must write a diplomatic history of the Republic that fits the status of a powerful country based on the principles of protecting the dignity of the party, enhancing national prestige, and protecting national interests.” Commissioner Seo predicted that if Prime Minister Kishida responds to Secretary General Kim’s letter and resumes humanitarian dialogue, North Korea’s foreign policy this year will get off to a smooth start in accordance with the ‘party decision’.
Commissioner Seo said that North Korea could approach Japan by exchanging letters after confirming the facts about the process of resolving the abduction issue, and ultimately conducting mutual visits. In response, South Korea and Japan will discuss joint response measures and establish humanitarian dialogue between North and South Korea. It was also suggested that preparation measures should be prepared for this.
In addition, “South Korea, the United States, and Japan have scheduled or expected political events that are important domestically, so this could pose a challenge to the cooperation of the three countries in terms of consistency in policy toward North Korea,” he said. “There is a need to strengthen policy coordination by actively conducting working-level consultations between the three countries,” he emphasized.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.