South Korea's new Prez calls rival North Korea’s nuke program 'national security threat'

South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol during his inaugural speech on Monday flagged that the nuclear weapons development programme undertaken by North Korea not only poses threat to the national security of South Korea but to entire North-East Asia. He further proposed an "audacious plan" to work hand-in-hand with its northern counterpart provided that agreed on dialogue and diplomacy to "peacefully resolve" nukes threats. Following his swearing-in ceremony at late hours, Yoon Suk-yeol also urged Pyongyang to embark upon a path of "complete denuclearisation" to avert further deterioration of the situation in the Korean peninsula.

"While North Korea's nuclear programs are a threat not only to our security and that of North-East Asia, the door to dialogue will remain open so that we can peacefully dissolve the threat," President Yoon said, as quoted by AP.

The new president was briefed on North Korea soon after he assumed office Monday midnight. The former prosecutor-general has pledged to run a "tough" rule against North Korean aggression, the Associated Press reported. President Yoon, however, expressed willingness to propose an "economic plan" to boost the North Korean economy.

Who is Yoon Suk-yeol?

A conservative candidate, Yoon Suk-yeol was elected as president of South Korea after a closely fought poll battle in March. Yeol secured 48.56% against his chief liberal rival Lee Jae-Myung of the Democratic Party, who received 47.83%, making it a major tectonic shift in the country's politics. Yeol is a former public prosecutor and lawyer. He has previously served as Prosecutor General of South Korea between 2019 and 2021 under ex-South Korean President Moon Jae-in. During his presidential election campaigns, Yeol expressed strong condemnation of economic interventionism and supported economic liberalism. In November 2021, he stated that if elected as president, Yeol will demand the US redeploy tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea. He also added that he would be open to more US THAAD missile deployments in the country.

What does President Yeol bring to the table?

Apart from promoting harsh sanctions against North Korea, which is in line with the US, Yoon during his presidential campaign has hinted at bolstering bilateral relations with Japan. "The issues between the two countries are not easy, but they are not impossible to solve," he had said in the context of the colonial history of both countries. In domestic affairs, while Yoon said he would enhance actions to mitigate COVID-related threats, on the other hand, he plans to abolish the Ministry of Gender Equality. Yoon blames "feminism" and women being more assertive to rights led the country to witness low birth rates, as per the Korean Herald. Last but not the least, the South Korean President also plans to set up a government body to reform corporate investment and ease labour laws to ensure more flexibility for workers.

(Image: AP)