Study On The Moon Jae-in Administration's Policy Towards The Democratic People's Republic Of Korea

When Moon Jae-in was elected as president,South Korea was in a state of internal and external difficulties.Firstly,the fall of Park Geun-hye has brought South Korea into political chaos.Secondly,the situation on the Korean Peninsula is extremely tense and seriously endangers South Korea's national security.It is mainly reflected on that the DPRK-ROK relations have fallen to a record low;With the frequent nuclear test of North Korea and the various joint military exercises between the United States and South Korea against North Korea,the United States and the DPRK are even more confrontational.In this context,based on the comprehensive consideration of national interests and party interests,Moon Jae-in has changed the Park's policy toward the DPRK.The government's policy toward the DPRK could be roughly divided into two stages: the first is the policy conception stage and the second is the policy implementation stage.The policy conception is mainly embodied in the “Berlin concept” proposed by Moon Jae-in and the policy of “peace and prosperity” summarized by the Korean Unification Ministry.Among them,the latter is the systematic explanation of the former.Its main contents include: Firstly,the peaceful coexistence and common prosperity are the policy vision.Secondly,the policy guiding ideologies include the five principles of self-dominance,strong security,mutual respect,communication with the nation,and international cooperation.Thirdly,it has formulated a phased and all-round solution;promoted the relations between the ROK and the DPRK and the DPRK nuclear issue in parallel;established an institutionalized system to ensure continuity;and established a four-step strategy for the foundation of peaceful reunification through reciprocal cooperation.Fourth,by applying this policy,eventually to achieve the solution of the DPRK nuclear issue,build a lasting peace mechanism;promote the sustainable development of the Korean-Korean relationship;and build the three ultimate goals of the Korean Peninsula New Economic Community.This policy was proposed in 2017.In the case of a serious confrontation between the DPRK and the ROK,despite the strong push by Moon Jae-in,it did not receive any response from North Korea.Therefore,in the early days,Moon's policy was at the stage of conception.In 2018,Moon's policy toward the DPRK entered the second phase.This is not only the result of the government's efforts to promote the improvement of North-South relations,but also the product of North Korea's domestic strategic adjustment.Strategically,South Korea slowed down the cooperation with the US “extreme pressure”,released goodwill toward the DPRK,promoted the suspension of the US-ROK joint military exercise,and began to build military mutual trust with North Korea,and tried to maintain North Korea.The goal of the dialogue on the denuclearization of the peninsula is to achieve a peaceful settlement of the DPRK nuclear issue.Politically,on the basis of “Winter Olympics diplomacy”,Moon's administration promotes the reconciliation between the ROK and the DPRK through positive exchanges such as summit meetings,high-level visits,cultural and sports exchanges,and reunion of separated families,and improved relations between the ROK and the DPRK.Economically,South Korea promoted economic cooperation between the two sides by maintaining a cooperative consensus,creating a cooperative environment,and creating three conditions for cooperation.In particular,its attitude toward the DPRK was adjusted from the initial US sanctions to the DPRK to appropriately lift the sanctions against the DPRK in order to achieve the policy objectives of the Korean Peninsula New Economic Community.Moon's policy toward the DPRK has achieved certain results.For example,it has improved the North-South relationship on the peninsula,eased the tension,and helped the United States and the DPRK improve relations and make a certain progress in denuclearization of the peninsula.However,it can not achieve the strategic goal of North Korea to abandon the nuclear as a whole,because there are so many constraints on the government's policy toward the DPRK,such as the geopolitical pattern of the peninsula,South Korea's own strength,the US-South Korea alliance,etc.