[imText1]Recently, dialogue between North and South Korea has turned tense. Since the 5.31 local elections, not only has North Korea begun condemning South Korea politically, but the North Korean official in charge of South Korean relations has also warned of a potential break with South Korea, and the military authority has made threats of military conflict.
On the 10th, Chief Secretary Ahn Kyung Ho, of the DPRK’s Committee for the Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland, asserted that “If the Grand National Party seizes power, the 6.15 Joint Statement will be invalid as will be the railway and road plans linking Seoul and Pyongyang. The Mt. Geumgang tourist industry, and the Gaesung Industrial Complex will disappear”. He is also the Chairman in North Korea for Accomplishment of the 6.15 Joint Statement.
Chief Secretary Ahn also mentioned in a threatening tone that the cessation of all private cooperative exchange businesses was a definite possibility.
It is likely Ahn’s intention to sway domestic opinion in the South by threatening cessation of business cooperation between the two Koreas if the Grand National Party seizes power.
It also shows how important the North Korea government considers the result of the local elections to be in regard to their future relations. If such a transfer of political power were to occur, all South Korean aid to North Korea in the name of ethnic cooperation will likely cease. The Sunshine Policy, which seems to have acted as a buffer against U.S. influence, has lost some of its previous hold on South Korean society, leading to uncertainty among North Korean leaders.
On the 9th, The Rodong Shinmun reported that the deputy of North Korean Navy Headquarters stated that, “The number of maritime invasions by South Korean naval forces numbered 120 this year. South Korea will be forced to take responsibility for any conflicts arising from their actions”.
On the 11th, the North Korean Air Headquarters announced in a report that U.S. reconnaissance planes violated North Korean airspace on the 6th, 8th, and 10th of last month, adding that, “If the U.S. reconnaissance planes continue violating our airspace, there will be repercussions”.
Although in the past North Korea denounced the U.S. through the North Korean media, this time North Korea warned the U.S. of airspace violations through the North Korean Air Headquarters. This method of warning by the North Korean government is interpreted by some as intending to exacerbate existant military tensions, while insinuating that continuation of policies by the Grand National Party will lead to an overall increase in tensions within the Korean peninsula.
This may also be an attempt by North Korea to bring the South Korean public to the understanding that the only way to prevent a war between the two Koreas is to embrace ethnic unity and encounrage cooperation.
Given that the economic sanctions by the U.S continue, and that the approval rating within the South for the Grand National Party keeps rising, denunciation of the South Korean government by North Korea is likely to continue, at lest for a while. However, if the aggressive propaganda by the Northern government continues to attract attention, both in and outside of the peninsula, it is unclear what other kinds of provocative actions North Korea may take.
