SEOUL, August 15 (AJU PRESS) - At the 79th Liberation Day ceremony held at the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts in Seoul on Thursday, President Yoon Suk Yeol unveiled a three-stage strategy for Korean unification, highlighting the need for a unified Korean Peninsula founded on freedom and democracy.
His speech comes amid rising tensions between Seoul and Pyongyang, following the rapid deterioration of inter-Korean relations since Yoon assumed office in 2022. The Yoon administration's first Defense White Paper, published in 2023, reinstated North Korea as South Korea's primary enemy after a six-year hiatus. This move reflects a significant shift in inter-Korean relations and a departure from the previous administration's approach.
In the absence of official dialogue between the two Koreas, hostilities have escalated. Pyongyang has launched propaganda balloons filled with wastepaper and feces into South Korea, while Seoul has responded by redeploying propaganda speakers along the demilitarized zone (DMZ). These speakers can transmit messages deep into North Korean territory, reaching military bases and villages kilometers away.
"As long as our systems remain divided, our liberation can only remain incomplete," President Yoon stated. "Complete liberation will only be realized on the day when a unified state of freedom and democracy is established across the entire Korean Peninsula, with the people as its masters."
Reflecting on Korea's history, Yoon added, "Since the loss of national sovereignty up until today, our people have written a truly great history. The fundamental value that runs through this great journey is freedom, and our liberation is the fruit of the struggle for freedom."
The president's three-stage unification strategy focuses on "freedom values," "changes in the North Korean populace," and "international solidarity." He explained, "First, our people must firmly establish the values and capabilities necessary to pursue free unification; second, we must bring about changes that make the North Korean people earnestly desire free unification; and third, we must work in solidarity with the international community."
Yoon also proposed the creation of a "dialogue and consultation body" at the working level between South and North Korean authorities. "This body could address any issue, including tension reduction, economic cooperation, human exchanges, cultural exchanges, and responses to disasters and climate change," he said. He further noted, "Humanitarian issues such as separated families, South Korean prisoners of war, abductees, and detainees could also be discussed."
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