Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho speaks during a press conference held at the Office of the Inter-Korean Dialogue in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap

North's agency for handling inter-Korean affairs believed to be reassigned to psychological warfareBy Kwak Yeon-soo

Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho criticized former President Moon Jae-in’s memoir, Monday, which blamed the United States for the deadlocked nuclear talks with North Korea.

Kim responded to claims made by Moon, who wrote in his memoir that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un said during the inter-Korean summit held at the truce village of Panmunjeom in April 2018 that he had no intention of using nuclear weapons.

“When assessing a threat posed by North Korea, we need to consider both its intent and capability. North Korea has the capability to threaten South Korea with its nuclear weapons and missiles. If we ignore North Korea’s capability and focus only on its intention, it may lead to a totally misjudged situation. That’s why integrated deterrence among South Korea, the U.S. and Japan is important,” Kim said during a press conference at the Office of the Inter-Korean Dialogue in Seoul.

The minister referred to the 1938 Munich Agreement between Nazi Germany, Great Britain, The France and Italy, which many point to as a trigger point for World War II due to the British adopting a policy of appeasing Adolf Hitler's expansionist demands.

“Entrusting people’s lives and national security to North Korea’s good intentions can have negative consequences,” he said.

The minister said North Korea's lack of response poses the most significant challenge to resuming inter-Korean dialogue, which has been stalled since the Hanoi summit between Washington and Pyongyang ended without a deal in 2019.

Former President Moon Jae-in’s memoirs are displayed at Kyobo Bookstore in Gwanghwamun, central Seoul, Sunday. Yonhap

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Since April last year, North Korea has remained unresponsive to daily phone calls through an inter-Korean liaison line and military hotline.

“Considering both internal and external factors, resuming inter-Korean dialogue seems unlikely in the near future. However, communication channels between the North and the South need to be restored in order to resolve humanitarian issues and provide assistance to the North when affected by natural disasters including floods,” he said.

The minister said North Korea has renamed a key party organization responsible for inter-Korean affairs to align with its hostile "two-state" system proposed by Kim Jong-un.

At the year-end plenary party meeting in 2023, the North Korean leader ordered officials to disband agencies dealing with inter-Korean affairs. He also declared that the North was ending a policy seeking reconciliation with the South.

“We discovered that North Korea has changed the name of the United Front Department (UFD) into the Workers' Party of Korea Central Committee 10 Bureau,” Kim said. “We believe the new entity is tasked with carrying out psychological warfare.”

The UFD previously dealt with inter-Korean talks and North Korea's policy on South Korea, serving as a counterpart to Seoul’s unification ministry.

"The North Korean leader’s move to erase the legacy of his predecessors points to an attempt to abandon the principles of his grandfather Kim Il-sung and his father Kim Jong-il. This could lead to ideological chaos in North Korea,” the minister said.

Kim also vowed to resolve the issues of abductees, detainees and prisoners of the 1950-53 Korean War, calling for their safe repatriation from the repressive regime.

The minister and Julie Turner, the U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights, will visit Seonyudo Island on Friday, while Vice Minister of Unification Moon Seoung-hyun will visit Hong Island next Monday, where South Korean teenagers were abducted by the North in 1977 and 1978.