South Korea should prepare for a potential shift in Washington's approach to North Korea's nuclear program by fortifying its own security capabilities, South Korea's ruling party leader Rep. Kim Min-seok said Monday.
"We need to strengthen South Korea's independent security capabilities in advance, taking into account the possibility of a dramatic improvement in US-North Korea relations and even a 'freeze first, resolution later' approach to the North Korean nuclear issue," Kim, Democratic Party of Korea chair, said in his policy address to the National Assembly.
"The days of relying solely on the United States are over," he added, saying Washington is increasingly positioning itself as "a hard-nosed negotiating partner rather than a benevolent protector."
Kim's remarks come amid attention to the possibility of diplomacy between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. Trump renewed signals of openness to direct engagement with Kim, saying last month that he hopes to meet the North Korean leader later this year.
Trump also moved to scale back a major South Korea-US military exercise, arguing that the drills are expensive and risk sending what he called a "totally inappropriate and hostile" message to Pyongyang. The move has fueled concerns over whether reduced training could affect the allies' ability to deter North Korea as it continues to advance its nuclear and missile capabilities.
The ruling party chair also addressed North Korea's "two hostile states" policy, saying that while it is difficult for Seoul to accept Pyongyang's approach, it should consider whether aspects of the concept could be used to promote peaceful coexistence.
North Korea has been cementing its shift away from unification with South Korea. A revised Workers' Party charter adopted at the ninth Party Congress in February removed references to unification and inter-Korean relations, reinforcing Pyongyang's move toward treating the two Koreas as separate, hostile states, according to a recent assessment by the Institute for National Security Strategy.
"Rather than completely ignoring the two-state approach, we need to pool our wisdom on how it could be used for peaceful coexistence," Kim said.
On relations with other major powers, Kim said South Korea needs to develop a long-term national strategy to navigate what he described as decades of close competition between the United States and China.
Regarding Japan, he called for a pragmatic approach, saying Seoul should find ways to manage relations with Tokyo "from the perspective of safeguarding the past while also safeguarding the future."
Beyond foreign and security policy, Kim used the address to lay out the ruling party's domestic agenda, pledging to pursue a "feasible" constitutional revision, improve people's livelihoods, reform the police and expand cooperation with the opposition.
Kim proposed incorporating the spirit of the Gwangju Democratic Uprising and the Busan-Masan Democratic Uprising into the Constitution's preamble as a "starting point for constitutional revision."
On changes to the country's power structure, an issue on which the rival parties remain sharply divided, he said constitutional revision should go "as far as the public wants."
"While respecting the procedural principles of the current Constitution and laws, we will pursue a feasible constitutional amendment that reflects the changing times and people's demands," Kim said.
His remarks came after National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik said at a press conference that whether an incumbent president could seek another term under a revised Constitution would ultimately be for the people to decide.
Cho's comments prompted opposition lawmakers to question whether he was leaving open the possibility of President Lee Jae Myung seeking a second term.
Kim also urged the main opposition People Power Party to join discussions on constitutional revision, invoking the legacy of former President Kim Young-sam, a conservative leader who helped dismantle the military's political influence after South Korea transitioned to democracy.
He noted that Kim Young-sam's government prosecuted former military rulers Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, dismantled Hanahoe, a powerful secret network of military officers, and formally recognized the democratic significance of the May 18, 1980, pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju.
Against that historical backdrop, ruling party chair Kim Min-seok argued that the People Power Party, which traces its political lineage in part to Kim Young-sam's conservative camp, would ultimately have to decide whether to support efforts to enshrine the spirit of the May 18 uprising in the Constitution.
Kim also identified police reform as a major priority, pledging to root out what he called the police's "six major abuses" and introduce stronger checks on its investigative powers.
"We will pool all our wisdom to check and streamline the investigative powers of the police, which have emerged as the most powerful authority," he said.
Kim placed particular emphasis on people's livelihoods, mentioning the Korean term "minsaeng," referring to livelihood issues, nine times during the speech.
He pledged support for three major national projects and a proposed future response fund financed by additional tax revenue stemming from the semiconductor boom.
Describing the initiatives as "projects to revive South Korea," Kim proposed an eight-party consultative framework bringing together the central and local governments, the National Assembly, local councils, universities and civil society, businesses and labor to discuss ways to make more efficient use of the country's workforce.
On housing, Kim called for both faster housing supply and a broader overhaul of the country's housing policy framework, proposing discussions on a "housing New Deal" and a new governance structure involving central and local governments, experts and other stakeholders.
He also pledged further market reforms following the third revision to the Commercial Act, including stronger corporate disclosure requirements and the introduction of a discovery system.
Kim sought to portray the Democratic Party as a "responsible ruling party" that would support the Lee administration while maintaining what he described as a "creative horizontal relationship" with the government.
"We will become a responsible ruling party that speaks candidly about public sentiment while firmly supporting the government," he said.
At the same time, he extended an overture to the main opposition People Power Party, proposing broader bipartisan discussions on issues including housing and policies for young people.
Kim said the ruling and opposition parties' youth committee chiefs should jointly participate in government meetings on youth issues and suggested expanding policy consultation mechanisms between the rival parties.
In a symbolic proposal aimed at reducing partisan divisions, Kim suggested rearranging seats in the National Assembly's plenary chamber alphabetically rather than grouping lawmakers by party.
"Wouldn't it be worth trying to have at least one place — the plenary chamber — where lawmakers from different parties sit together, agree with one another from time to time, complain about members of their own parties to each other and engage seriously together?" he said.
Kim's speech drew applause from Democratic Party lawmakers multiple times, while People Power Party lawmakers remained largely unresponsive, aside from occasional jeers and objections.
mkjung@heraldcorp.com
