The "nine-point" and light industrial aid agreements, adopted Tuesday following inter-Korean economic talks in Jeju, will be milestones marking the beginning of a new dimension in economic relations with North Korea, relations that are now headed towards maturity.
The agreement on light industry stipulates that the South will give the North materials it needs and in exchange the North will give the South the chance to develop the North’s natural resources. This is the first economic agreement that uses a commercial format, and it is also exactly the model the North has been calling for, which involves exchanging what one side lacks for what the other side has an abundance of. If the agreement is carried out smoothly, it becomes highly likely the "joint Korean resources development zone" the South wants to built in the North’s South Hamgyong province will actually happen.
The significance of the aggregate mining at the lower mouth of the Han River, as agreed on in Jeju, is also great, as it is expected to have the effect of satisfying much of the South’s demand for raw sand while bringing the North Korean military into the economic cooperation enterprise. Also of note is the North’s proposal for joint projects in third countries, in that it could lead to energy development in the Russian Far East or an energy pipeline along the Korean Peninsula.
The agreement for participation in light industrial development has shortcomings, however, in that it links economic cooperation and tests on the new railway that links North and South Korea, tests that were originally scheduled for May 25 before suddenly being canceled by Pyongyang. If those rail tests do not happen by August, the whole framework of what was agreed upon could be upset, and that in turn could influence other clauses in the agreement. The North needs to be actively interested in carrying out the tests. In this sense, this particular agreement will determine whether cooperation that has been forged in the area of economics can expand to include military matters. That is why the situation calls for the North to take a responsible attitude.
The situation surrounding the Peninsula is a grave one. The United States is intensifying its pressure on North Korea and it has been well over half a year since the last round of six -arty talks. Japan--in step with American hard-liners--is enthusiastically re-arming itself, and as China achieves high-speed growth, there is a growing sense of sinocentrism. Having the North and South pledge to increase mutual trust and work to form a community becomes a foundation for the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula and the whole of Northeast Asia. What is important is good-faith implementation by both sides. Even quality blueprints are useless if they are not followed up with thorough implementation.
[Editorial] A new phase in economic links with N.K. |
