South Korea's Unification Ministry Clarifies 'Peaceful Two-State' Concept

The Hankyoreh reports on the South Korean Unification Ministry's clarification regarding its first unification white paper under the Lee Jae-myung administration. The white paper suggested a shift towards a 'peaceful two-state relationship' between North and South Korea, a concept that had drawn criticism for potentially implying official recognition of North Korea as a state.

“

It is absolutely not a legal recognition of North Korea as a state.

Ministry officials emphasized that this was not a legal recognition of North Korea as a state but rather a consideration of the de facto reality of two states existing on the peninsula. The aim, they explained, is to institutionalize peaceful coexistence as a stepping stone towards eventual unification. This approach builds upon historical precedents, such as the 1991 simultaneous UN admission of both Koreas and the inter-Korean basic agreement, which acknowledged each other's political entities.

“

It is a consideration of the reality that two states exist in fact, and a plan that the Unification Ministry is reviewing for the institutionalization of peaceful coexistence.

The ministry further clarified that the 'peaceful two-state' concept was introduced to reflect Unification Minister Chung Dong-young's vision for peaceful coexistence, rather than being the government's definitive official stance. The initiative is part of the Lee Jae-myung administration's broader policy of peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula, with the institutionalization of this coexistence being one of its key objectives. The white paper's inclusion of this idea is seen as a proposal under review by the ministry for achieving this goal.

“

The Lee Jae-myung administration's North Korea policy is a policy of peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula, and peaceful two states is one of the goals of the peaceful coexistence policy, and it is one of the plans that the Unification Ministry is reviewing to promote the institutionalization of peaceful coexistence between the South and the North.