North Korea as well as other foreign affairs and national security related stories are
what we'll be focusing on next.
To help us dissect all the events in those realms that made 2017 unique we have our Defense
correspondent Oh Jung-hee and Kwon Jang-ho from the foreign ministry.
Good to have you with us.
Great to be here.
We saw tensions on the peninsula brewing to another level...
with the change of leaderships in countries involved.
And this is where you come in Jung-hee,.. what was the biggest North Korea story for
2017?
Semin,... before that here are the numbers.
North Korea conducted one nuclear test and 15 missile tests this year,... firing 20 missiles
in total.
That's less than in 2016... but I'd say this year's provocations were bolder and more daring.
If we look at last year's missile launches,... they had maximum range of 3,000 kilometers,...
putting the U.S. territory of Guam within reach.
But this year, Pyongyang's missiles reached higher and higher altitudes.
If fired at a normal trajectory, the latest Hwasong-15 is seen to have gone a lot further...
-- up to 13 or 14-thousand kilometers -- putting whole continental United States within reach.
After that test, Pyongyang claimed it was a successful one... that the regime has completed
its weapons program.
But we can't take the claim at face value -- many see there're more to be proven...
like the weight of nuclear warhead... and the missile re-entry technology.
The international community responded.
Tightening the noose further.
The United Nations adopting its strongest ever sanctions on Pyongyang.
Jangho, do give us a recap of how the world tried and force a positive turnaround from
the regime.
There were three new UN resolutions on North Korea this year.
That's the most in any single year.
They're also the strongest ever, and, to briefly list you some of the sanctions...
all coal exports from the regime have been banned, as well as textiles, food products,
iron and other metals and minerals.
Imports of petroleum products was also slashed by 90-percent, as well as a cap on crude oil.
Dozens of individuals and firms have been added to an international blacklist as well.
Experts say we are starting to see some signs they are having an effect within the regime
- North Korean state media reports are also warning the public to brace for difficulties
- but so far it's too early to tell how well they are working, and with recent reports
that say China and Russia have secretly been supplying oil at sea there will be calls for
the all parties to enforce them more strictly.
Tension escalating to levels we've not seen before.
The President of the United States arguably had a big hand in fanning the flames.
Donald Trump came into office in January bringing a lot of change.
His brand of diplomacy towards North Korea and its leader was... unlike any we've seen
before.
Yes very much so.
One expert pointed out that there hasn't been this much talk of war since the Korean War
itself in the 50's.
I mean, North Korea has always threatened to destroy the U.S. and that is perhaps nothing
new.
But for the leader of the U.S. to promise "fire and fury", as Trump did earlier this
year, IS unprecendented.
However, I would point out that although tensions have heightened, the general consensus is
that we're still very far away from an actual all out conflict.
There's been lots of words, but no tangiable movement as of yet.
Jung-hee, in 2018, which direction are most North Korean watchers leaning towards:
More pressure from the international community proving to be fruitful... or faster than before
development of nuclear arsenal?
Well, there's speculation that the regime could halt its provocations at least for a
while...
since it's claimed the weapons program is complete.
And eyes are on Kim Jong-un's New Year's speech to be released tomorrow... because it could
give us a hint about what direction North Korea would take next year.
Experts that I've talked to think Kim could declare the North a nuclear state... and try
to start peaceful dialogue with surrounding countries.
But, if that fails... and the international community holds on to tough sanctions against
the regime,... it'll only provoke the regime for more provocative actions...
like more tests of ICBMs or submarine-launched ballistic missiles... or even a seventh nuclear
test.
(Korean) "What the North calls a "completion" is actually
about 90-percent complete, not a hundred percent.
There're more stages Pyongyang has to go through to diversify its missiles and actually deploy
them.
The North could also go on to develop solid-fuel missiles... and SLBMs."
Seoul's role in perhaps reining in the regime looks to change,... with the relatively young
liberal administration.
President Moon offered both carrot and stick to Pyongyang,... while juggling a different
style of diplomacy with the U.S.
How do we anticipate things to shape up for next year?
When Moon Jae-in got to work at the top office, there was an attempt to shift away from the
previous government's hardline stance.
They tried to reach out to North Korea, offering to open talks and provide aid, but they have
all been rebuffed or simply ignored.
If North Korea continues its provocations, Seoul has said they will continue to push
for further sanctions and pressure, but I think we can also expect the Moon administration
be bolder in their plans to engage with the North as well.
As Junghee said, we will have to watch Kim Jong-un's new year address, and other factors
such as whether they decide to send athletes for the PyeongChang 2018 Winter Olympics in
February as well.
While we have plenty of stories related to the hermit kingdom this year....
there's none more dramatic than the daring crossing by a North Korean soldier.
And it's all caught on tape.
Junghee do fill us in on the terrifying escape that almost cost his life.
We've seen North Korean soldiers defect to the South by crossing through the military
demarcation line several times in the past....
But indeed, that defection in November was the most dramatic one.
It happened at the Joint Security Area where soldiers from the two Koreas stand face-to-face.
Just to give our viewers a brief update,... the soldier is alive -- he's going through
the rehabilitation process... and he's being investigated by the military and intelligence
authorities.
Other than him, we saw three more soldiers defect to South Korea by crossing over the
inter-Korean border,... the most recent one taking place just ten days ago.
Pundits say this isn't really a sign that the Kim Jong-un regime is unstable...
but just cases of defection happening intermittently with soldiers who've caused problems within
their units... or who've been influenced by South Korea's
anti-Pyongyang broadcasts at the border.
To better protect itself against the growing threats from up North, Seoul deployed the
THAAD anti missile system.
Unfortunately, even if it was a choice made out of necessity, the defense upgrade was
perceived differently by China, leading to frayed Seoul-Beijing relations.
That's right.
The THAAD battery became fully operational in early September after Pyongyang conducted
its sixth nuclear test.
THAAD is a U.S.-made system capable of intercepting incoming missiles from North Korea, which
complements the current Patriot missile defense system.
China is worried the THAAD radar can gather intelligence on its military, and so it's
been strongly opposed to it and has retaliated all year long against South Korea for deploying
the system.
Beijing banned group tours and reduced flights to South Korea... and imposed stricter customs
regulations on South Korean products.
And Lotte had to suffer the most.
For offering the land to station the THAAD battery,... businesses of 24 Lotte-owned companies
came to a halt in China.
South Korea and China agreed in late October to put the row behind them...
but it remains to be seen whether it's truly over... since China's been quite capricious...
in lifting and imposing ban on group tours to South Korea.
Taking a side step to talk about another variable in the Northeast Asian diplomacy.
Japan.
One of the biggest stories of the year came just this week.
A special government task force released a very critical review of the 2015 Seoul-Tokyo
landmark deal on Japan's wartime sex slavery issue.
Bilateral relationship is once again hanging in the balance.
That's right, the main criticism was that there was not enough involvement from the
actual victims of the Japanese wartime sex slavery themselves.
President Moon described it as "deeply flawed" and that follow-up measures need to be taken.
The issue now is, what will those follow-up measures be?
Some have called for the agreement to be ripped up, but Tokyo have stated they have no intention
of renegotiating.
There is so much friction currently that Prime Minister Shinzo Abe may even snub Seoul's
offer to come to the Olympics next February.
There doesn't seem to be an easy fix to this, and it will be a real test of the adminsitration's
diplomatic nuance to navigate this issue going into 2018.
But we always have to keep in mind the victims.
There are only 32 publically registered survivors alive today, and their average age is over
90.
Seoul will be under pressure to find some sort of resolution to bring them some peace,
before its too late.
Alright guys we look forward to more updates on these situations in 2018.
Jang-ho, Jung-hee, thank you for coming in at this hour.