August
1. | - Kim Yo Jong, vice
department director of the Central Committee of the Workers’
Party of Korea of the DPRK issues a statement.
・
“Those inside and outside South Korea are freely
interpreting and inflating the significance of the
restoration of inter-Korean communication lines, and I think
it is premature and hasty to say that there is a public
opinion about the issue of a North-South summit.” ・
“I think that (the restoration of the communication lines)
should not be understood as anything more than the physical
reconnection. Hasty speculation and groundless
interpretation will only bring despair.” ・ “There have
been no discussions on the scale or form of the joint
military exercises, which are coming up at a crucial time….I
view this as an undesirable prelude which seriously
undermines the will of the top leaders of the North and the
South, who wish to see a step taken toward restoring mutual
trust, and which further beclouds the way ahead of the
North-South relations.” ・ “Our government and military
will keep a close eye on whether the South Koreans go ahead
with the aggressive war exercises in August, or make a big
decision. Hope or despair? It's not up to us.”
|
August 6. |
- The foreign ministers’ meeting of the ASEAN Regional
Forum is held (via video links).
・ (ROK Minister of
Foreign Affairs Chung Eui-yong) “I welcome the North Korean
representative’s participation in the ASEAN Regional Forum.”
“The latest restoration of inter-Korean communication lines
represents progress toward restarting the peace process on
the Korean Peninsula.” ・ (US Secretary of State
Antony Blinken) “The
U.S. looks forward to a positive response from the North
Korean representative to our proposal to meet anywhere and
at any time.” ・ (Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi)
“The upcoming exercise between South Korea and the U.S. is
not constructive under the current situation.” “The UN
Security Council needs to invoke the rollback terms of the
resolutions on the DPRK and ease the sanctions against the
DPRK.” ・ (North Korean ambassador to Indonesia An
Kwang Il) “North Korea remains unmoved in its determination
for the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula.” “The
North works to ensure self-sufficient national development
and security even amid the pressure from hostile
forces.” |
August 10. |
- Kim Yo Jong, vice department
director of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party of
Korea of the DPRK issues a statement condemning the ROK-US
military exercises.
・ “The joint military drills are
the most vivid expression of the U.S.
hostile policy towards the DPRK, designed to stifle our
state by force, and an unwelcome act of self-destruction for
which a dear price should be paid as they threaten the
safety of our people and further imperil the situation on
the Korean Peninsula.” ・ “Whatever the scale and mode,
the joint military exercises are of aggressive nature as
they are a war rehearsal.” ・ “At a critical time when
the international community keeps a close eye on the
developments of the situation on the Korean Peninsula, the
U.S. pushes ahead with the war rehearsal. The U.S. is the
one who destroys regional peace and stability, and the US
administration’s calls for ‘unconditional talks’ and
‘diplomatic engagement’ with the North are nothing but
hypocrisy designed to conceal its ulterior intention of
invasion.” ・ “For peace to take root on the Korean
Peninsula, the U.S. should pull back the armed forces of
invasion and war equipment deployed in the South. As long as
the U.S. forces remain in the South, the root cause for
periodic deterioration of the situation on the Korean
Peninsula will never disappear.” ・ “In order to cope
with the ever-growing U.S. military threats, we will further
strengthen absolute deterrence, namely national defense
power aimed at responding quickly to any military act
against us as well as preemptive strike capabilities.”
・ “I take this opportunity to express strong regrets
to South Korea’s act of betrayal.” ・ “I announce this
statement by delegation of authority.” |
August 10. | - North
Korea does not respond to the South’s calls (via the
inter-Korean liaison office line and military
hotline).
・ The opening calls on the hotlines were
made as usual at 9 a.m. North Korea declined to answer the
closing phone calls that afternoon on the military hotline
(16:00) and the inter-Korean liaison office line
(17:00). |
August 11. |
- Kim Yong Chol, head of the United
Front Department of the Central Committee of the Workers’
Party of Korea issues a statement condemning the ROK-US
military exercises.
・ “The South Korean authorities
defied the opportunity to take a turn for the better amid
unanimous expectations of all the compatriots at home and
abroad for peace and stability on the Korean
Peninsula.” ・ “We gave Seoul an opportunity to make a
choice.” ・ “The South showed that the ‘peace and
trust’ touted by Seoul was mere wordplay.” ・ “(South
Korean authorities] opted for alliance with outsiders, not
harmony with compatriots; escalation of tension, not
détente; and confrontation, not improved relations.”
・ “We will make them realize by the minute what a dangerous
choice they made and what a serious security crisis they
will face because of their wrong choice.” ・ “They must
be made to clearly understand how dearly they have to pay
for answering our good faith with hostile acts after letting
the opportunity go for improved inter-Korean
relations.” ・ “It is clear that there is no other
option for us as South Korea and the U.S. opted for
confrontation with our state, without making any change.”
・ “We will keep going with what we should do.”
|
August 15. | - ROK President Moon Jae-in gives a speech
marking the 76th anniversary of National Liberation.
・
This year marks the 30th anniversary of South and North
Korea’s joint accession to the United Nations. One year
before that, in 1990, East and West Germany achieved
unification after 45 years of division. East and West
Germany built trust by exchanging good faith and intentions.
They created a “German model” that upholds universalism,
pluralism, coexistence, and co-prosperity. Moreover, by
overcoming neighboring countries’ concerns about their
unification through sincere reflection on the past, Germany
has become a pacesetting country in the European Union, a
leader championing universal values and standards shared
globally. ・ Division is the biggest obstacle
restraining our growth and prosperity and simultaneously a
tenacious barrier to permanent peace. Like Germany, we can
also remove this barrier. Although unification may take some
more time, we can create a Korean Peninsula model in which
the two Koreas coexist and contribute to the prosperity of
Northeast Asia as a whole through denuclearization and
establishment of permanent peace on the Peninsula. ・
The Northeast Asia Cooperation Initiative for Infectious
Disease Control and Public Health is now discussing the
possibility of sharing information and cooperating on
projects such as the joint stockpiling of medical and
epidemic prevention supplies and joint training of personnel
to respond to COVID-19. Since COVID-19 is now clearly not a
temporary threat, the importance of such cooperation has
become all the more significant. While expanding
cooperation, we will work hard to ensure that North Korea, a
member of the East Asian community of life, can participate
as well. ・ Firmly institutionalizing peace on the
Korean Peninsula will definitely benefit both Koreas
greatly. Most of all, the advantages that the Republic of
Korea would be able to enjoy will be enormous once we shake
off the so-called Korea discount and connect to the
continent rather than exist as a virtual island nation. If
we tirelessly envision peace on the Korean Peninsula, our
imaginations can reach beyond it and spread across Eurasia.
If we do not stop striving for reconciliation and
cooperation, that tenacious barrier will finally crumble and
new hopes and prosperity beyond our dreams will begin.
|
August 16-26. | - The South Korean and U.S. militaries
hold their Combined Command Post Training for ten days.
|
August 25. | - Jo Chol Su, the director-general of the
Department of International Organizations of the Ministry of
Foreign Affairs of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea
issues a statement regarding the UN report on the human
rights record of the DPRK.
・ The statement is titled
“Our State Takes Full Responsibility for Our People’s Life
and Safety.” ・ “I cannot understand at all why only
our anti-epidemic measures should be singled out as ‘human
rights abuses’ out of the general anti-epidemic measures
taken by all countries.” ・ “Contents and forms of
measures taken to protect the life and safety of its own
people are a totally internal matter that falls within the
sovereignty of a given country.” ・ “An ‘excessive
interest’ has been levelled at our perceived ‘human rights
abuses.’ It gives us strong doubt that his personal views
have been overshadowed by pressure from a certain power
hostile to our country.” ・ “I take this opportunity
to express my sincere expectation that the UN Secretary
General will put an earlier end to the selectivity and
double standard deeply rooted in the field of human rights,
rather than impairing his international reputation for lack
of prudence.” |
August
21-24. | - Sung Kim, the U.S.
special representative for North Korea, visits South Korea.
・ Sung Kim met the Minister of Unification on August
24; and had a bilateral consultation with the Vice Minister
of Unification and a meeting with his South Korean
counterpart on August 23. ・ Sung Kim said, “The U.S.
will continue to support inter-Korean humanitarian
cooperation projects.” “The U.S. does not have any hostile
intent against the North.” “I stand ready to meet my North
Korean counterpart anytime, anywhere.” |
August 21-26. |
- Igor Morgulov, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the
Russian Federation and the top Russian envoy for North
Korean nuclear issues, visits South Korea.
・ Deputy
Minister Morgulov met the Minister of Unification and had a
bilateral consultation with the Vice Minister of Unification
on August 25; and had a meeting with his South Korean
counterpart on August 24. |
August 27. | - The
International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)’s latest report
says that there are signs that the Democratic People’s
Republic of Korea (DPRK) appears to have restarted its
Yeongbyeon nuclear reactor.
|