The Daily sat down with Korean Ambassador to the United Nations Kyung-Won Kim to discuss Korea-U.S. relations. Kim served as the Korean ambassador to the United States from 1982 to 1988. Since then he has maintained his participation in international politics and pursued a career in academia in Canada, Korea and the United States.

The Daily: How would you characterize current relations between the United States and South Korea?

Ambassador Kyung-Won Kim: It’s improved. It was at a pretty low point when there were demonstrations around the streets of Korean cities against the United States. That was something that happened as a result of [an] accident: an American military vehicle in training accidentally killed two Korean high school girls. [It was] the military court’s decision not to punish the American military personnel that led to widespread demonstrations. That was the period in which the U.S. - Korean relations were at their lowest.

TD: And among the South Korean population in general, how have the sentiments towards the U.S. changed in recent years?

KWK: Inevitably there has been some change as Korea grew economically and [as] a political democracy. The Korean people began to speak their mind[s] more freely. In the past, we completely depended on the United States for almost everything, particularly for our security. We saw North Korea as the source of a security threat, and the United States maintained their troops on the Korean peninsula – in South Korean territory actually – to deter North Korean aggression. It was very effective deterrence too, so Korean people were very grateful for that. The last 10 years or so, the Cold War ended and the North Korean economy crisis became widely known, so most people in South Korea began to have difficulty seeing North Korea as a source of threat. North Korea looked weak instead of strong. Although in fact, in terms of military capability, North Korea still remains a source of threat, but public perception was that North Korea was not much of a threat, and therefore people were less conscious of the need for the U.S. military presence. But nevertheless, despite these changes in attitude, I would still say there is a consensus that favors the continuation of the security relationship with the United States.

TD: The North-South relations have varied a lot in the last few years. What is the current status of relations between the North and the South?

KWK: The main difficulty comes from the North Korean nuclear weapons program. The South Korean government’s position, [and] the South Korean people’s position is that it’s unacceptable, because North Korea’s nuclear arms would really create a huge problem for us. It would be a threat to us directly, but also it would be a threat and it would break the balance of power in northeast Asia. It would lead to possibly a nuclearization of Japan, and this would mean an arms race between Japan and China, and we would be in a great instability. Therefore we demand that the North Koreans put an end to their nuclear weapons development program in a transparent fashion and in an irreversible way. And the North Koreans are not agreeing with our position.

TD: What is the South’s current stance on dealing with this nuclear issue?

KWK: There has been some difference between Washington’s approach and Seoul’s approach. Washington was willing to consider economic sanctions against the North Koreans, if the North Koreans continue to insist on having nuclear weapons. Whereas the South Korean government took the position that not provoking the North Koreans is better. But now that the South Korean government’s position has moved closer to the U.S. position, this is not because it put pressure on South Korea, I think our people have thought deeply about the matter and decided that without the threat of sanctions, one cannot expect to be persuasive with [the] North Koreans. Whether we apply sanctions, whether we put pressure on North Korea depends on how North Koreans behave, that’s what we are saying. In that regard, we have come to share the same view the United States has. Therefore, I expect that this unity between American approach and our own approach will have some effect on the North Koreans’ attitude; I do hope so.

TD: What role do you expect the United States, Japan and China to play in resolving this conflict, and how will South Korea fit into that?

KWK: All of these countries agree that the Korean peninsula must not have nuclear weapons. But North Koreans have not shown that they agree with us. Among these countries, China probably has the most potential influence on North Korean behavior, because North Korea depends on the aid that the Chinese provide in terms of food and energy. But my understanding is that Chinese aid has been on the decline. and the Chinese are sending a message to the North Koreans in a subtle way that their aid is going to be dependent on North Korean behavior.

TD: What do you think is the future of North-South relations? Is reunification possible?

KWK: It’s one of those issues about which there is no way to predict what the future is going to be like, except to say that mystical as it may sound, I do believe that Korea eventually is going to be unified. Culturally and in terms of tradition, we cannot be separate permanently. We have to become one. But having said this, how are we going to become one again? The relationship is very tense, and it may become tenser as the North Koreans resist our demand that they put an end to the nuclear weapons program, but the North Koreans are in a state of economic collapse really, and therefore they need our help. And we are prepared to give them help, and so lets hope that the North Koreans come to their senses and decide to work with us. And with our help, let’s hope they do something about their economy and improve the conditions of life for their own people.

TD: Do you think that U.S. troops are a necessary presence along the border and in South Korea in general as long as tensions remain high?

KWK: Yes, they are a necessary presence not only in terms of what is needed to maintain peace on the Korean peninsula itself, but the U.S. military role in northeast Asia is a necessary component of our regional balance of power. If the United States withdraws completely from northeast Asia and does not play any security role, that spells danger and instability for northeast Asia.

TD: Has the war in Iraq changed the dynamic of U.S., South Korea and North Korea relations?

KWK: I’m sure it has, but it’s not easy to pinpoint exactly. There is some indications that the North Koreans have become more sober as a result of what has happened there, and North Korea may fear that the United States may do to them what it did to Iraq. On the other hand, Iraq continues to be a huge burden on the United States. Therefore, I personally [think] that the United States is likely to be more cautious in dealing with the North Korean issue as a result of the Iraqi experience.

TD: How Kim-Jong II he managed to continue his hold on the country and how strong is he currently?

KWK: North Korea is a country in which the people have never experienced what we would call freedom or free society. From the Lee Dynasty which was a traditional autocracy, they went under the colonial rule [of] the Japanese — and when the Japanese colonial rule ended in 1945, immediately a Stalinist [regime] was imposed on North Korea, and that continues even today. It’s difficult to expect a people to rise against Kim Jong II.