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| President Moon Jae-in. 2021.3.16/News1 © News1 Reporter Lee Kwang-ho |
As the Tokyo Olympic and Paralympic Games, scheduled for July, will be held without foreign audiences, we are interested in how the Moon Jae-in administration will affect the peace process on the Korean Peninsula.
Originally, President Moon Jae-in planned to improve relations between Korea and Japan and to prepare a venue for multilateral dialogue, including the two Koreas and the United States, starting with the Tokyo Olympics. However, as the Olympics are held under various restrictions, there are concerns that high-level contacts from each country may change passively.
According to politics on the 22nd, the Tokyo Olympics are the last large-scale event that allows multilateral consultations with North Korea, the United States, and Japan over the issue of the Korean peninsula within President Moon’s remaining term.
There are significant opportunities for summit diplomacy such as the World Climate Summit (April), P4G Seoul Summit (May), and G7 (June), but the schedule is tight and there is no decent opportunity to discuss issues with North Korea directly on the Korean Peninsula. .
President Moon, who has only one year left in office, has proclaimed the reactivation of the peace process on the Korean peninsula, which was halted after the inauguration of the Joe Biden administration.
In particular, as the Biden administration is emphasizing the necessity of cooperation between allies, such as the US, Japan, and South Korea in establishing a new North Korean policy, the improvement of the relationship between Korea and Japan, which has been tackled by past issues, has become a task that must be solved for President Moon as well.
In this regard, the Tokyo Olympics are expected to be an important opportunity to turn the waters into improving not only relations between Korea and Japan, but also inter-Korean, North American, and North Korean relations.
In fact, the Olympics are not just sports events, but are also the stage of international social politics and diplomacy. For example, the 2018 PyeongChang Olympics transformed inter-Korean relations, which had been skewed, into an atmosphere of dialogue and cooperation, and created an opportunity for Prime Minister Abe’s visit to Korea to be concluded despite the ice-like relationship between Korea and Japan.
For this reason, President Moon has also expressed a willingness to cooperate with the successful hosting of the Tokyo Olympics and improving relations between Korea and Japan.
Earlier, in a commemorative address for the March 1st, President Moon said, “The Tokyo Olympics can be an opportunity for dialogue between Korea-Japan, North Korea, North Korea, and North Korea,” and “Korea will cooperate for the successful hosting of the Tokyo Olympics.”
In addition, at an interview with US Secretary of State Blincoln and Secretary of Defense Austin on the 18th, “Korea-Japan relations are very important for peace, stability and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia, and are a solid foundation for cooperation between Korea and Japan.” “I will.”
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| President Moon Jae-in is taking a commemorative photo at the Blue House on the afternoon of the 18th prior to an interview with US Secretary of State Tony Blincoln and Defense Minister Lloyd Austin. |
Moreover, the Japanese government, which has been consistently silently answering the Korean government’s ruling for forced mobilization during the Japanese colonial period and compensation for damages to comfort women by the Japanese military, has also shown signs of progress in recent years.
On the 16th, Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimit Motegi replied to Foreign Minister Eui-yong Eui-yong sent a letter consoling the 10th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake. There is an assessment that the unspoken pressure of Minister Blincoln, who had visited Japan before Korea immediately, was at work.
However, as the Tokyo Olympics were held under restrictions, such as without foreign spectators, it was impossible to predict how much contact between high-level countries would be made.
The Blue House plans to continue planning for a peace process on the Korean peninsula, as it was already expected to make a decision without foreign audiences.
The meetings between the IOC and the Japanese government have been closely watched, and since it has already been delayed for one year, various interests such as advertising issues between the IOC and major countries are intertwined. That it was dominant is the explanation inside and outside the Blue House.
However, some analysts say that Japan, the host country, will invite a small number of high-ranking officials such as the United States and North Korea to successfully host the Tokyo Olympics.
In addition, apart from this, the Blue House is expected to provide an opportunity for inter-Korean dialogue at the National Olympic Committee (ANOC), which is scheduled to be held in Seoul in October.
ANOC is an event to discuss international sports issues, and more than 1,000 people, including delegations of the National Olympic Committee (NOC) from 206 countries, the chairman and members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and officials from the Olympic Organizing Committee, attend.