Controversy over NLL

Roh’s remarks during 2007 summit must be clarified

It’s shocking to hear an allegation that the late former President Roh Moo-hyun surrendered the Northern Limit Line (NLL), the de facto maritime border in the West Sea, during his landmark inter-Korean summit in 2007.

The allegation was made unilaterally by a ruling party lawmaker but those involved in the summit vehemently deny that it’s true. In this regard, this matter should be verified thoroughly, even through a parliamentary investigation, as the governing Saenuri Party argues.

This case also needs to be made clearer, given that Moon Jae-in, the presidential candidate of the main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) and Roh’s former presidential chief of staff, vows to be Roh’s avatar, especially with regard to policies toward North Korea, in the run-up to the Dec. 19 presidential election.

Rep. Chung Moon-hun of the Saenuri Party said in a parliamentary audit of the Unification Ministry Monday, “During the Oct. 3 inter-Korean summit in 2007, Roh held one-on-one, closed-door talks with then North Korean leader Kim Jong-il. The transcript of their talks shows Roh telling Kim that the NLL is a headache. It was unilaterally drawn by the United States that wanted to conquer more territory.’’

Chung claimed that Roh verbally promised to Kim that South Korea would no longer respect the controversial sea border and the issue would be resolved automatically. “All of the conversations were recorded and North Korean officials shared the record with their South Korean counterparts. Copies of the transcript still remain at the Unification Ministry and the National Intelligence Service although Roh ordered his aides to scrap the transcript,’’ said Chung.

We see the partisan controversy over the NLL as a serious matter, considering that the head of state indicated intentions to give up the country’s maritime territory. But we don’t insist on jumping into a hasty conclusion, taking into account that the Unification Ministry as well as Roh’s former aides deny the existence of the transcript.

Nevertheless, you can’t overemphasize the importance of the territorial issue, especially with North Korea. This is all the more so, given that clashes between the two Koreas have frequently occurred along the NLL.

True, the maritime boundary was drawn unilaterally by the U.S.-led United Nations Command after the Korean War, as the two Koreas failed to agree on the maritime demarcation line. As a matter of fact, however, the North tacitly acknowledged the NLL as a “practical operational control measure’’ before 1973, when it began disputing the maritime border.

If Roh’s remarks on the NLL prove true, it should be dealt with seriously. In this respect, it’s regrettable that the DUP turned down a proposal for parliamentary probe by the ruling party.

The point is whether the lawmaker’s allegation is true and the transcript exists. In a way, the allegation is seen as part of the ruling party’s smear campaign against Moon, one of Roh’s close confidants, ahead of the presidential poll. The government should launch an investigation into the case and find the truth at the earliest possible date. <The Korea Times>

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