Initiative for Korean Unification

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www.unikorea.go.kr

Initiative for Korean Unification

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Need for Unification

06 • Need for Unification

Significance of Unification

12 • What Unification Will Mean 14 • Domestic Benefits

18 • International Benefits

Unification Policy of

the Park Geun-hye Administration 24 • Basic Direction

26 • Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula

30 • Initiative for Peaceful Unification on the Korean Peninsula and Three Channels for Cooperation 36 • Systematic Preparation for Unification

Today, a ‘wall of military confrontation’ runs through the center of the Peninsula. A ‘wall of distrust’ has also been erected during the war and the ensuing decades of hostility. Formidable still is a ‘socio- cultural wall’ that divides southerners and northeners who have long lived under vastly different ideologies and systems in terms of how they think and live. Then there is a ‘wall of isolation’ imposed by North Korea’s nuclear program, cutting North Korea off from the community of nations.

(Speech by President Park Geun-hye at the Dresden University of Technology on March 28, 2014)

Need for Unification

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Initiative for Korean Unification Need for Unification 07 06

North Korea trespassing the Northen Limit Line in the West Sea area

The Korean people had maintained a unitary state on and around the Korean Peninsula, sharing a strong sense of national community based on their long history and tradition, and the same language and customs for thousands of years. The national sovereignty of Korea was, however, forcefully taken from them in the early 20th century amidst the competition between imperial powers. Korea finally emerged as a sovereign nation again in 1945, thanks to the collective efforts of the whole country, at the end of World War II. However, Korea faced another tragedy when it became divided into north and south in the opening salvo of the Cold War between the Eastern and Western blocs. Then, the Korean War broke out when North Korea launched an invasion of South Korea on June 25, 1950, causing millions of casualties over three years. The tragedy of the fratricidal war exacerbated the already profound distrust between South and North.

Some intermittent efforts were made in inter-Korean dialogue to bridge the divide during the years of detente around the world in the 1970s, and an atmosphere of reconciliation and cooperation was created in earnest in the aftermath of the Cold War in early 1990. Many different inter-authority dialogues including two summit talks were carried out, and economic cooperation, such as Mt. Geumgang tours, operation of the Gaeseong Industrial Complex, and inter-Korean trade, as well as exchange in the private sector in various respects were pushed forward. Unfortunately, however, none of the dialogues, exchange, or cooperation efforts could fundamentally tear down the wall of deep- rooted mutual distrust and confrontation that had built up over decades.

The two Koreas are still in a state of tension and conflict to this day and face each other down across a heavily fortified border.

The major causes of the tension and conflict on the Korean Peninsula are the North’s nuclear weapons program and its provocative threats.

North Korea has so far carried out three nuclear tests since its first test in 2006, against the stiff criticism of the international community. It also committed several extreme provocations such as the sinking of the Cheonan, a South Korean Navy corvette, after a violation of the Northern Limit Line (NLL) off the west coast, and the launching of an artillery barrage on Yeonpyeong Island in 2010. Also, the North has repeatedly tested various ballistic missiles and engaged in cyber-terrorist attacks.

Recently, it even breached the Armistice signed in 1953 and the non- agression agreement made in 1991 through a provocation involving landmines in the DMZ area. These constant military provocations and threats are spurring an exhausting inter-Korean arms race, in turn incurring a tremendous waste of resources.

The adverse effects of national division do not stop there. Numerous people bear the pain of having been separated from their families for decades due to the division of the peninsula, and half of the applicants for the reunions of separated families have already passed away without ever learning whether their loved ones were still alive or not on the other side of the peninsula. Other very pressing humanitarian issues that can be deferred no longer include the South Korean prisoners of war who were detained in North Korea and could not be repatriated to the South, and South Korean abductees who were kidnapped to the North after the signing of the Armistice Agreement in 1953.

Seoul destroyed by the Korean War

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Need for Unification 08

Despite being situated on the corridor connecting Eurasia and the Pacific Ocean, North Korea is isolated from the rest of the world, and this has delayed the advancement and integration of Northeast Asia and Eurasia. The tremendous inefficiency of the socialist planned economy and the ruinous cost of the North’s nuclear weapons program have kept the North Korean economy under constant recession. Furthermore, the economic disparity between the two Koreas has continued to widen, and the lifestyles and cultures of South and North Korea have substantially diverged, gradually eroding their homogeneity.

The Korean Peninsula should be unified in order to tear down the wall of division that has been built up for seventy years and to bring peace and prosperity to both the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia.

Rising out of the ashes of the war, the Republic of Korea realized both industrialization and democratization in a shorter time than any other country did in history. Gaining great stature and displaying

Economic gap between South and North Korea

(Source: As of 2014, Bank of Korea) North South

Population Nominal GNI GNI per capita

1,39 million

won

29.68 million 50,42 won

million persons 24,66 million persons

1441,5 trillion

won

34.236 trillion won

x2 x43 x21

Total trade volume Exports Imports Installed capacity

billion dollars3,1 4,4 billion dollars 572,6

billion dollars 525.5 billion dollars 1,0981

trillion dollars

x144 x181 x118

93.22 million kW

7.25 million kW

x12

7.6 billion dollars

Separated Families

(Source: As of July 2015, Ministry of Unification)

• A total of 129,698 persons are registered to the official list of separated families in hopes of finding their loved ones, of whom 63,406 have passed away, leaving 66,292 survivors (51%).

• Among the survivors, 54,123 persons are over 70 years of age (82%), making the average age of all survivors 79.

South Korean Prisoners of War and Abductees

• Based on statements of the repatriated South Korean prisoners of war (POWs) and North Korean defectors, the ROK government estimates that about 500 POWs are still alive in North Korea.

• The number of war-time abductees is estimated at about 100,000, and that of post-war abductees is estimated at 516.

competitiveness not only in economic development but also in culture, arts, and sports; becoming an important agent of international aid; and contributing to international peace-keeping efforts, South Korea has firmly established itself as a middle power.

The last remaining historical mission and opportunity in front of the ROK is peaceful unification of the Korean Peninsula, which is also the way for the ROK to make a greater contribution to the peace and development of Northeast Asia and the whole world.

Initiative for Korean Unification 09

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Significance of Unification

Some Koreans oppose unification for fear that its costs would be too high. However, I believe unification would be a bonanza.

Unification of the Korean Peninsula would be a chance for the Korean economy to make a huge leap.

(President Park Geun-hye at the New Year Press Conference, January 6, 2014)

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TSR

TKR TCR TMR

Urumuchi

Tashkent

Zhengzhou Lianyungang

Busan Gwangyang Pyongyang

Seoul Shinuiju

Dandong Beijing

WonsanChongjin Khasan Ulan-Ude

Ulaanbaatar

Rajin Harbin Karimskeya

Omsk

Unification signifies the geographical unification of the territory, the political establishment of a unitary state, the integration of an economic bloc, and the sociocultural restoration of national homogeneity.

Unification of the Korean Peninsula does not mean resurrecting the state that existed prior to the division of 1945. Unification can be a creative process to build a new community by blending two different political systems and diverged cultures.

A unified Korea would be free of the fear of war and the nuclear threat that have weighed on the Korean Peninsula for 70 years. The sufferings of separated families would be resolved, and individuals of both South 12

What Unification Will Mean

and North Korea would lead happy lives where they could achieve their dreams in a free and affluent environment. Unification will transform the whole Korean Peninsula into a haven of peace and hope.

Unification of the Korean Peninsula will promote peace in Northeast Asia and the whole world as well as Korea, and contribute to the prosperity of Asia and all mankind by offering new economic opportunities.

The Park Geun-hye administration envisions a “new Korean Peninsula”

that helps all people on the Korean Peninsula become happy and contributes to the international community.

Significance of Unification

• Korean Peninsula where everyone is free and happy

- Human rights, freedom, and affluence will be secured and peace and prosperity spread throughout the peninsula.

• Korean Peninsula that builds a secure and affluent Asia

- The peninsula will render services to overcome conflicts in North -east Asia, stabilize the region, and drive new growth in Asia.

• Korean Peninsula respected by the international community for furthering the advancement of the human race

- The peninsula will comply with international norms, lead development cooperation, and contribute to world peace and promotion of security.

A New Era on the Korean Peninsula

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National Aspect

The Korean people share a very rich history of developing a unitary state through mutual help and cooperation based on community spirit even in the face of numerous national crises. In light of such a history, the confrontation and conflict of the past 70 years resulting from national division are a tremendous aberration. Unification is a process of normalizing this situation. Unification means the reunion of separated families and the restoration of a single community where both South and North Koreans together enjoy the values of freedom, welfare, and human dignity.

Security Aspect

Unification will help fundamentally alleviate the security anxiety on the Korean Peninsula. Provocative threats of North Korea are persistent and have often led to armed clashes. Furthermore, North Korea has continued to develop nuclear weapons and missiles, exacerbating the instability on the Korean Peninsula. The ultimate path to resolve the nuclear issue and eliminate the danger of war on the Korean Peninsula is, clearly, unification of the two Koreas.

Domestic Benefits

Economic Aspect

Unification of the Korean Peninsula will drive new growth for the Korean economy. A unified Korea will be a domestic market of 80 million people, and a wider range of economic activities will be pursued across the entire peninsula. The capital and technology of South Korea will be combined with the labor force and mineral resources of North Korea to maximize synergy. Once-severed arteries of transportation and logistics will be reconnected. The Eurasian continent and the Pacific Ocean will be linked, and the industries of trade, logistics, energy and tourism will grow by leaps and bounds with the Korean Peninsula as their hub.

• The economy of a unified Korea would be worth 4,320 trillion won in 2060 (world’s 10th biggest economy), which compares with 1,135 trillion won in 2013 (world’s 12th biggest economy).

• Even though the estimated cost of unification in real terms is 4,657 trillion won, its net benefit will be 14.451 quadrillion won, making the unification benefits 3.1 times greater than the costs.

• The production inducement effect on South Korea resulting from the development of various regions in North Korea will be 3,650 trillion won (annual average: 81 trillion won); the added value inducement effect will be 1,683 trillion won (annual average: 37.4 trillion won); and the job inducement effect will be 29.53 million persons (annual average: about 656,000 persons).

Economic Benefits Estimated for 45 Years After Unification

(Source: 2014 Report by the National Assembly Budget Office)

14,451

Unification benefit

Unification cost

4,657

×3.1

Unification cost-benefit comparison (in trillion won)

The GDP of a unified Korea

4,320

2013 2060

1,135

(in trillion won)

Significance of Unification 15

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The Economist, a British weekly magazine, reported under the title

“Korea Opportunities” that the South would also merge with a population that is younger and has almost twice as many babies. That would be a demographic boon, as South Korea’s working-age population begins to shrink from 2017. Disbanding the North’s standing army, the fourth-largest in the world, would free up workers. In total, about 17m workers would join the South’s 36m. South Korea would also reap a windfall in reserves of rare earths.

An estimate by a South Korean research institute values the North’s mineral wealth at $10 trillion.

Report on unification as a bonanza by The Economist

(Internet edition, February 27, 2015)

• For Germany, the bulk of post-reunification funds was raised by the public sector. However, for the Korean Peninsula, the costs of unification in its initial stage can be reduced if funds from private financial institutions, corporate investment, international organizations, or foreign investment are used.

• The most reliable means of financing is to eliminate any uncertainty that the market may feel and to increase the attractiveness of investment in a unified Korea while maintaining sustainable and sound government finances. If numerous organizations such as international financial institutions invest in unification of the Korean Peninsula, the private sector will be effectively encouraged to contribute funds.

Raising Unification Funds

Some people think that unification of the Korean Peninsula will incur prohibitive cost. However, unification cost may depend very much on the economic, political and social conditions at the time of unification.

If the inter-Korean economic gap is narrowed by developing inter-Korean relations while solidifying South Korea’s economic foundation, and if the international community’s support for and involvement in the process of unification are promoted, the costs of unification will be reduced and the benefits of unification will outweigh the cost.

Sociocultural Aspect

Unification will provide opportunities to counter the hostility and confrontation of the Cold War atmosphere and spread democracy based on trust and tolerance throughout the peninsula. The division has deepened the heterogeneity between the two Koreas and often caused conflicts in politics and civil society in South Korea. Unification will help resolve social conflicts and make our democracy mature.

Moreover, unification will provide the chance to restore the cultural homogeneity of the Korean people. It will bring together the mindset and lifestyle of South and North Korea that have diverged, based on a mature culture of democracy, thereby giving rise to a new national culture.

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The elements of both cooperation and conflict coexist in East Asia today, and the situation on the Korean Peninsula is the most complex of all. Unification of the Korean Peninsula will not only benefit the Korean people, but it will bring positive impacts to the security and economy of the whole Eurasian continent, including the Northeast Asian region.

Security Aspect

Unification of the Korean Peninsula will facilitate the formation of a Northeast Asia peace community. As the reunified Germany served as an essential prerequisite of European integration, so a unified Korea will act as a catalyst for the integration of Northeast Asia. A unified Korea, as a non-nuclear nation, will become a strong point of human and material exchanges, mutual understanding and trust-building, thereby accelerating multilateral cooperation in the region.

A unified Korean Peninsula will also herald the beginning of a world without nuclear weapons. The North Korean nuclear issue will be fundamentally resolved, with the result that the nuclear nonproliferation system will be maintained. The nuclear domino effect in East Asia will be prevented, and world peace will be promoted through disarmament and substantive cuts in military expenditure.

Economic Aspect

Once unified, the Korean Peninsula will be transformed into a new market with a population of 80 million people and offer opportunities for economic growth to Korea and the neighboring countries. Given the tremendous demand for investment that may arise from the opening of North Korea and the reconstruction of its infrastructure, neighboring countries will be able to grow together.

The Korean Peninsula can be regarded as a center connecting the Eurasian continent and the Asia-Pacific region. The linkage of the two regions through the unification of the two Koreas would invigorate the Yellow Sea Rim Economic Bloc, the East Sea Rim Economic Bloc, and the Pacific Rim Economic Bloc, and facilitate the construction of the Economic Community in East Asia (ECEA).

Aspect of Universal Values

Unification of the Korean Peninsula will do much toward spreading universal values of democracy and human rights. A unified Korea free from security threats such as nuclear weapons and missiles will propagate norms of freedom, human rights, and rule of law in the international community and play greater roles in addressing global issues such as energy security, environmental problems, climate change, and disaster relief.

A unified Korea will serve as a gateway for spreading culture in East Asia. Unification of the Korean Peninsula will go a long way towards promoting peace and cooperation in Northeast Asia. It will expedite cultural openness through which humans, resources, and culture come together, blend, and spread, thereby creating a new chance to build a cultural community in East Asia.

International Benefits

Significance of Unification 19

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EU

The Leaders agree on the need to build trust between the two Koreas so as to improve inter-Korean relations as a foundation for sustainable peace on the Korean Peninsula. In this regard, the EU supports the ROK’s Trust-building Process on the Korean Peninsula and shares grave concern over the human rights situation in the DPRK.

(ROK-EU Joint Press Statement on November 8, 2013)

ASEAN

The Leaders share the view that it is important to maintain sustainable peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia, and welcome ROK’s Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula and the Initiative for Peaceful Unification on the Korea Peninsula as well as Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative (NAPCI) in promoting lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula and cooperation and trust in Northeast Asia.

(ROK-ASEAN Commemorative Summit Joint Statement on December 12, 2014)

UN

The United Nations stands ready to facilitate efforts to bring peace and stability to the region. If the DPRK’s current activities continue, we could see more arms competition throughout the region. There is a strong international consensus on the need of denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. I welcome the proposal at the start of this year for a high-level inter-Korean dialogue. I also fully support President Park Geun-hye’s Trust- Building Process on the Korean Peninsula.

(Secretary General Ban Ki-moon on May 19 2015, in Asian Leadership Conference)

Neighboring Countries’ Perceptions on Unification of the Korean Peninsula

US

The United States supports President Park’s vision of a Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons, free from the fear of war, and peacefully reunified on the basis of democratic and free- market principles, as articulated in her Dresden address.

(ROK-US Summit Talks on April 25, 2014)

China

China highly values the efforts of South Korea in improving inter- Korean relations. Beijing supports Seoul’s vision in which the two Koreas can boost relations, reconcile and cooperate through dialogue. China respects and supports the desire of the Korean people to achieve the ultimate goal of a peaceful unification.

(ROK-China Joint Statement on July 4, 2014)

Russia

Russia supports the Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula, an initiative to achieve a secure peace by building and solidifying trust between the two Koreas, and pledges supports for the efforts to build trust on the Korean Peninsula, which is an important step toward a better relationship between South and North Korea, as well as toward regional security and stability.

(ROK-Russia Joint Statement on November 13, 2013)

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박근혜정부의 통일비전 23 CHAPTER. 2 통일의 미래상

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Unification Policy

of the Park Geun-hye Administration

If we are to seize a historic opportunity for unification when it comes along on the Korean Peninsula, we should start duly preparing for it now. As part of the efforts to do so, a Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation will be launched to search for effective ways to bring about national unification.

(President Park Geun-hye, Asian Leadership Conference, March 3, 2014)

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The Republic of Korea seeks peaceful unification based on the principles of liberal democracy (Article 4 of the Constitution).

Based on this constitutional spirit, the previous administrations have consistently pursued the National Community Unification Formula intended to build a national community in a gradual and peaceful manner, and ultimately to achieve peaceful unification.

The Park Geun-hye administration also follows the unification scheme of the previous administrations and takes a gradual and peaceful approach which starts from ‘small unification’ and moves towards ‘big unification.’ The government intends to first achieve

‘small unification’ by establishing an economic and cultural community through exchange and cooperation in various areas and accomplish ‘big unification’ that will culminate in political and institutional integration.

To this end, it is essential to begin working together first on softer matters which the two Koreas can more easily agree on and to build trust under which all commitments made are honored in full.

ROK’s Scheme of Unification

• Provisions in the Constitution

- (Article 4) The Republic of Korea shall seek unification and shall formulate and carry out a policy of peaceful unification based on the principles of freedom and democracy.

- (Article 66) The President shall have the duty to pursue sincerely the peaceful unification of the homeland.

• National Community Unification Formula

- Background: The “One Community Unification Formula” was devised in 1989 by an agreement between the ruling and opposition parties, after some 250 rounds of seminars and hearings to garner ideas from different parts of the society. Afterwards, the government announced a revised and strengthened version of the formula under the name of “National Community Unification Formula” in the August 15th Liberation Day speech in 1994.

- Principles of unification: Self-autonomy, peace and democracy - Envisioned future of a unified Korea: An advanced democratic nation that guarantees freedom, welfare and human dignity

- Unification process: Step-by-step approach toward building one nation-state

Mutual trust is formed through

multi-faceted exchange and

cooperation Phase of reconciliation

cooperationand

Phase of the Korean Commonwealth

Economic, social and cultural community

is restored and discussions on political integration is begun through a joint

organization

Phase of completion of a unified

nation

Unified national assembly and government are established through a democratic process on the basis of a unification

constitution (one people, one nation,

one system and one government) Unification Policy of the Park Geun-hye Administration

Basic Direction

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The Park Geun-hye administration is pursuing the Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula to develop inter-Korean relations by building trust between the two Koreas based on solid national security, to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula, and to lay the groundwork for peaceful unification. The Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula is a policy designed to break the vicious cycle of progress and regression in inter-Korean relations and create a new relationship between South and North Korea.

Firstly, the Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula moves forward on the basis of strong security. The government will strongly deter Pyongyang’s provocation and respond firmly if any provocative action occurs.

Secondly, the Trust-Building Process aims to build mutual trust by honoring agreements. It seeks to discuss and agree on accessible issues one by one, and to accumulate experiences of honoring the promises made between the two Koreas.

Thirdly, the Trust-Building Process seeks to create an atmosphere to encourage Pyongyang to make the “right” choices. It will drive Pyongyang to abandon nuclear weapons and abide by international norms and obligations. Also, it will strive constantly to create favorable conditions for the North to change, by promoting trust- based dialogue and cooperation.

Objectives, Principles, and Policy Directions of the Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula

Objectives

Principles

Policy Directions

Developing inter-Korean relations; Establishing peace on the Korean Peninsula; and Laying the groundwork for unification

Aligned approach, Evolving North Korea policies, and International cooperation

① Pursuing policies based on solid national security

② Building trust by means of carrying out agreements

③ Creating conditions that encourage the North’s right choices

④ Promoting national consensus and international cooperation

Fourthly, the Trust-Building Process moves forward based on the confidence of the people and the international community. The government aims to build strong consensus among the general public upon unification issues by ensuring transparency in policy efforts and to ensure effectiveness and acceptability of the policy by maintaining strong cooperation with the international community.

The Park Geun-hye administration strives constantly to improve inter- Korean relations by dialogue and cooperation, while standing firm to Pyongyang’s misconducts including armed provocations, nuclear pursuit and missile development. Although inter-Korean relations have not progressed as much as intended due to the North’s lack of enthusiasm, the government continues to provide humanitarian assistance for the North Korean people while pushing forward purely socio-cultural exchanges and cooperations for livelihood of people. It also makes preparations for unification by strengthening the domestic infrastructure for unification and eliciting support from the international community.

By doing so, the government aims to build mutual trust between the two Koreas, create a virtuous cycle between better inter-Korean relations and denuclearization of the peninsula and lay groundwork for peaceful unification.

Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula

Unification Policy of the Park Geun-hye Administration 27

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• Definition

- The Eurasia Initiative is a new cooperation strategy which aims to boost the region’s dynamism, and to ensure sustainable peace and prosperity of the whole Eurasian continent as well as the global society by promoting peace and cooperation in Eurasia.

- Since President Park Geun-hye first announced the Eurasia Initiative at the International Conference on Global Cooperation in the Era of Eurasia in October 2013, concrete blueprints for it were proposed at the 10th ASEM Summit in October 2014 and through her keynote address at the World Policy Conference in December 2014.

• Key Objectives and Progress

- Enhanced connectivity for a continent that is truly “one”: Pursuit of the “Silk Road Express” project in order to strengthen transport and logistics networks and overcome intra-regional severance

- Strengthened partnership for a continent of creativity: Promotion of mutually-beneficial cooperation projects and exchange of human, intellectual and cultural resources in order to foster innovation and boost productivity

- Channel of trust and peace for a continent of peace: Expansion of regional cooperation, by promoting cooperation projects among the two Koreas and Russia and among the two Koreas and China, on the basis of the Trust- Building Process on the Korean Peninsula and the Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative

Eurasia Initiative

• Definition

- An element of Trustpolitik by the Park Geun-hye administration;

a future-oriented effort of the government to overcome regional imbalance between growing economic interdependence and now- lagging political and security cooperation.

- A process of accumulating ongoing practices of small but meaningful cooperation, with an aim to encourage the countries in the region to build consensus on multilateral partnership.

• Key objectives and agenda

- To strengthen cooperative ties with major Northeast Asian countries and to expand partnership with outside countries and organizations.

- To advance cooperation in sectors of regional common interest such as nuclear safety, energy security, disaster management, environment, cyberspace security, drug and public health.

* Regarding cooperation for nuclear safety, President Park Geun-hye proposed the formation of Northeast Asia Nuclear Safety Consultative Body in her Liberation Day speech on August 15, 2014.

- To build consensus among the participant countries starting with cooperation on soft security issues and to gradually expand the scope of cooperation to include hard security issues.

• Progress and future direction

- The first High-Level Inter-Governmental Meeting on Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation was held in October 2014: US, China, Japan, Russia, and Mongolia joined as official participants while the UN, EU, and NATO attended the meeting as dialogue partners.

- Going forward, we will actively facilitate cooperation in functional areas on particular issues and encourage North Korea to participate.

Northeast Asia Peace and Cooperation Initiative The Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula is being implemented in close coordination with the major diplomatic initiatives of the Park Geun-hye administration: Northeast Asia Peace & Cooperation Initiative and the Eurasia Initiative.

The “Northeast Asia Peace & Cooperation Initiative” aims to accumulate practices of cooperation starting in less sensitive and less burdensome sectors, and eventually develop a multilateral cooperation framework. The Eurasia Initiative is a plan to create a new Eurasian continent, by overcoming division, isolation, tension and conflicts in the region and promoting peaceful communication and open exchange for shared prosperity.

Progress in the trust-building process will stimulate the whole Eurasian continent including Northeast Aisa to move toward peace and cooperation, and through a virtuous cycle, this movement will in turn contribute to the Korean unification.

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While the Trust-Building Process on the Korean Peninsula is a framework for unification policies that proposes objectives, principles, policy directions, and tasks of inter-Korean relations serving to achieve unification of the Korean Peninsula, the Initiative for Peaceful Unification on the Korean Peninsula and the Three Channels are concrete action plans to realize small unification based on the trust-building process.

Initiative for Peaceful Unification on the Korean Peninsula Stating in her visit to Germany on March 28, 2014, “It is when those in the South and the North can understand each other and can get along as people of the same nation, that the Korean Peninsula can truly experience renewal as one,” President Park Geun-hye declared the Initiative for Peaceful Unification on the Korean Peninsula (Dresden Initiative). The Dresden Initiative puts forward

President Park Geun-hye speaking in Dresden

three proposals to the North to establish a foundation for peaceful unification, and it calls for creation of a DMZ World Eco-Peace Park and for the North’s denuclearization.

• Three-point proposal to North Korea to establish a foundation for peaceful unification

① Agenda for humanity

- Easing separated families’ agony through regularization of their reunions, and by other means

- Increasing humanitarian aid including the delivery of food and nutritional supplement packages to North Korean pregnant mothers and infants (1,000 days package)

② Agenda for co-prosperity

- Setting up multi-farming complexes to develop agriculture, livestock raising, and forestry of the North

- Investing in the construction of transportation, telecommunications, and other components of infrastructure and development of mineral resources

- Implementing trilateral projects among the two Koreas and Russia, including the Rajin-Khasan joint project, and among the two Koreas and China around the North Korean city of Shinuiju

③ Agenda for integration

- Promoting genuine people-to-people contact by the private sector by encouraging exchange in history, culture and art, and sports

- Sharing the South’s experience in economic management and development of special economic zones, and providing education and training opportunities in finance, tax administration, and statistics - Jointly developing educational programs for future generations ⇨ Establishment of an “Inter-Korean Exchange & Cooperation Office” proposed

• Building DMZ World Eco-Peace Park in cooperation with the UN

• Call for North Korea’s denuclearization

- Offering support for the North’s membership in international financial institutions and attraction of international investment if the North decides to forgo its nuclear programs

- Pursuing the establishment of a Northeast Asian Development Bank and a multilateral peace and security framework in Northeast Asia

Initiative for Peaceful Unification on the Korean Peninsula

and Three Channels for Cooperation

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Three Channels for Cooperation

After announcement of the Dresden Initiative, President Park Geun-hye raised the need for small channels for meetings and communication between people from the two Koreas in her address on the 69th Liberation Day on August 15, 2014. Emphasizing that South and North Korea need to first reconcile their ways of thinking and lifestyles via the small channels, she proposed to the North the opening of three channels: a channel for environmental cooperation, a channel for the livelihood of people, and a cultural channel.

In the 70th Liberation Day speech on August 15th 2015 that also coincided with the 70th year of division, President Park Geun- hye urged Pyongyang once again to create a lively and peaceful peninsula together, by building the DMZ World Eco-Peace Park, finding solutions for separated families, jointly responding to natural disasters and safety threats and implementing exchange projects to restore the family bond.

Three Channels for Cooperation

Channel for environmental

cooperation

Channel for the livelihood of the people

Channel for culture

• Reconnecting and restoring the severed ecosystem on the Korean Peninsula

• Starting with joint management of the rivers and forests that are shared by the North and the South, more mutually-beneficial cooperative project will be pursued.

• Reunions of separated families and humanitarian assistance

• Commencement of cooperation for the building of infrastructure that supports efforts to meet livelihood needs

• Sharing the South’s economic development know-how in the long term

• Utilizing the North’s rich mineral resources and workforce as new drivers of growth

• Jointly excavating and preserving cultural assets

• Jointly pursuing cultural projects to commemorate the 70th anniversary of liberation

The Park Geun-hye administration is carrying out projects that can be implemented jointly with the North under the current circumstances. If the people of the two Koreas communicate and interact starting with small things and strive to restore their homogeneity, and if small channels for co-prosperity of the two Koreas are built up one by one, a community based on trust will ultimately come into being on the Korean Peninsula.

Key Projects

Firstly, the government is working hard in many respects to create an environmental community between the two Koreas. The government ensures that private-sector organizations provide the North seedlings, seeds, pest control agents, and other materials necessary for reforestation in North Korea, and it is in consultation with international organizations including the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) with respect to projects to protect the North’s forests and environment.

Secondly, the government is supporting mother-and-child health projects in cooperation with international organizations and NGOs under its firm position that humanitarian assistance to particularly vulnerable groups should be granted continuously irrespective of the political situation. The government is supporting aid programs for infants and children by the World Health Organization and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), food and nutrition projects by the World Food Programme (WFP), and domestic NGOs

Humanitarian aid for North Korea by international organizations

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that provide humanitarian aid to the North. Also, the government intends to build multi-farming complexes to jointly develop agriculture, livestock farming, and forestry in North Korea.

Thirdly, to reverse the divergence of language and lifestyle that is ongoing between the two Koreas due to prolonged division, the ROK government seeks to expand genuine sociocultural exchange in culture, religion, and sports. The Joint Board of South and North Korea to draft a dictionary of the common language of the two Koreas resumed its work in 2014 after a hiatus. The joint excavation and research of ruins of Manwoldae (the royal palace of the Goryeo Dynasty in Gaeseong) have also been resumed.

Meanwhile, the government renders strong support for interactions of athletes between the two Koreas, as it did by inviting the North Korean team to the 2014 Incheon Asian Games (September 19 - October 4) and having the South Korean national team participate in the 2015 International Youth Football Tournament in Pyongyang (August 21-24).

Fourthly, the government urges measures for separated families, such as regular reunions, full-scale confirmation of fates and whereabouts, and exchange of letters and video messages. The Park Geun-hye administration organized a reunion event on the occasion of the lunar new year 2014 and is striving to engage Pyongyang in dialogues to find solutions for separated families. In the 2015 Liberation Day speech, in particular, the President proposed an exchange of the complete list of separated families as the first step for confirmation of fates and whereabouts of the separated family members.

North Korean athletes in the closing ceremony of the Incheon Asian Games 2014

Fifthly, the government is advancing a plan to create the DMZ World Eco-Peace Park, in order to transform the demilitarized zone that symbolizes division and confrontation into a place full of life and peace.

The government aims to build partnership together with the North and the international community and create the park around the Military Demarcation Line in a manner that minimizes impact to the ecosystem.

Since President Park first unveiled the initiative at the speech to the joint session of the US Congress in May 2013, she has been calling for the North to respond at various occasions including the 2013 Liberation Day speech and the Dresden speech in March 2014.

Lastly, the government started a project to restore the Gyeongwon line railway (connecting Seoul and Wonsan) in August 2015, in order to reaffirm the importance of unification and make practical preparation for unification on the occasion of the 70th year of division. The project started at the southern part of the railway that can be restored at the discretion of the South Korean government. Discussions with the North to restore the railway in the DMZ area and above will be also advanced in parallel.

Separated families’

reunion on the occasion of the Lunar New Year 2014

DMZ

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Launch of the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation

One of the four administrative priorities of the Park Geun-hye administration is the establishment of a foundation for peaceful unification. To achieve this objective, in July 2014, the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation was launched as a public- private cooperative body to prepare for unification.

Starting with a plenary session held in August 2014, the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation has held plenary sessions presided over by the President, its chairperson, on a regular basis to discuss issues that must be addressed to enable unification. The

Committee also serves as a channel for communication with the general public by holding hearings and seminars. It has engaged in various activities to secure ideas and cooperation from the international community concerning unification of the Korean Peninsula.

Unification Education to Raise Public Awareness About Unification

According to the annual survey on public attitudes toward unification conducted by the government, about 80-84 percent of the public are interested in unification and about 75-80 percent aspire to unification, showing that the South Koreans are very conscious of unification. However, the younger generation, which will take the lead in an era of unification, is less interested in unification than their parents and grandparents.

Systematic Preparation for Unification

Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation

Composition

Organization

Operation

It consists of 50 members including the chairperson (President) and two vice chairpersons (each representing the private sector and the government).

▲ Subcommittees specialized in diplomacy and security, economy, social and cultural areas, politics, and law were established.

▲ A National Assembly consultation body and civic, press, and academic advisory groups are in operation to collect various opinions.

Plenary sessions are held on a quarterly basis;

subcommittees are convened on a monthly basis;

and advisory groups meet on a regular basis.

Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation

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The ROK government is distributing a variety of educational materials on unification and taking a cultural approach to younger people in order to ensure that they perceive unification as more positive and familiar.

Efforts to Improve North Korean Human Rights and Support for North Korean Defectors

Improving human rights conditions in North Korea is essential in order to narrow the gap between South and North Korea and achieve unification in a way that benefits everyone. The ROK government actively participates in the efforts to improve human rights conditions in North Korea by the international community with the United Nations in the lead. For its part, the ROK government strives to enact the North Korean Human Rights Act to more effectively help improve the human rights situation in North Korea.

North Korean defectors’ successful settlement in South Korea is essential for post-unification integration. A total of 28,227 North Korean defectors have arrived in South Korea as of July 2015. The ROK government puts them through social adaptation education and grants them housing arrangement services as well as vocational training.

In cooperation with local communities, the government also offers personalized settlement support services for employment, education, and healthcare.

Preparations for Unification Together with the International Community

The Park Geun-hye administration strives for unification that the world supports and participates in, and one that makes political, economic and cultural contribution to the world. To this end, the government endeavors in various ways to ensure that the international community observes and supports unification of the Korean Peninsula.

Firstly, the government strives to share the vision of Korean unification with the international community. Through diplomatic efforts of multiple levels including summit talks, it deepens

understanding of and support for the ROK policy for unification among the neighboring countries. Also, it works with the private sector to broaden consensus on the vision and necessity of unification of the Korean Peninsula throughout the world.

The government also strives to ensure that the international community participates in the process of unification in order to gain a bigger momentum. In the same context, it prepares favorable condition for the world to participate in the inter-Korean cooperative projects by advancing the Rajin-Khasan logistics pilot program and globalizing the Gaeseong Industrial Complex.

The journey to end the era of division and move toward unification of the peninsula will be also a journey toward a more peaceful East Asia and a more vibrant global economy.

The Park Geun-hye administration will continue to move forward, by building mutual confidence and improving inter-Korean relations on the basis of public consensus, and sharing the vision for Korean unification with the international community.

Rajin-Khasan logistics pilot project (April 2015) Gaeseong Industrial Complex

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Published by | Published in | Address |

Tel. | Designed by |

Ministry of Unification October 2015

Government Complex Seoul

209 Sejong-daero, Jongno-gu, Seoul 2100-5751

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