Date: Monday, December 20, 2021
Time: 10:30-10:37 A.M.
1. Unification Ministry to evaluate 2021 performance and establish
2022 work plan
With 2021 coming to an end, the Ministry is scheduled this week to
evaluate this year’s performance and establish next year’s work plan.
On December 23, the Unification Ministry will hold a joint briefing
with the Ministries of Foreign Affairs and Defense on the 2022 work
plan at the Office of Inter-Korean Dialogue. At the briefing, which
will run under the theme of peace on the Korean Peninsula, the three
ministries will reflect on the efforts made to advance the Korean
peace process and introduce next year’s major policy directions to the public.
The Ministry will also gather public opinion on its 2022 work plan.
On December 22, a general meeting of the Ministry’s 2022 policy
advisory council will be held at the Office of Inter-Korean Dialogue.
The Ministry annually organizes and operates a policy advisory council
of around 100 experts in six different sectors including unification
policy, inter-Korean exchange, and dialogue. The 2022 council was
recently appointed, and the upcoming general meeting will be an
opportunity to get to know the new members and listen to their policy
suggestions. Unification Minister Lee In-young will take part in the
meeting, and council members will join through both on and off line
means considering measures to prevent and control Covid-19.
On December 23, the public-private inter-Korean humanitarian
cooperation policy council will be held in writing. The council, which
serves as a channel between the Unification Ministry and the Korea NGO
Council for Cooperation with North Korea, is held biannually to
discuss cooperation methods between the government and civilian groups
in the process of promoting humanitarian aid to the North. The
upcoming meeting will discuss ways to bolster inter-Korean
humanitarian cooperation in 2022.
2. Other schedules
On December 21, pioneer universities participating in unification
education will jointly hold an academic conference at 1:30 P.M.
Universities designated and supported by the Unification Ministry act
as a hub for unification education, and specializes in research and
development of unification education programs and operation of
unification courses. Nine universities currently acting as hubs will
participate in the conference to share the results of their 2021
activities and seek ways for improvement next year. Minister Lee will
deliver congratulatory video remarks at this event.
Meanwhile, an exhibition of goods produced by North Korean defectors
is on display at the National Assembly starting today at 10 A.M., and
a meeting of the National Unification Advisory Council’s youth
committee is scheduled to be held at 1:40 P.M. Minister Lee will be
attending both these events.
3. Q&A
Q. There have been media reports suggesting that vice department
director Kim Yo Jong has been promoted. What is the Ministry’s take on this?
A. Kim Yo Jong’s titles confirmed by North Korea include vice
department director of the party’s Publicity and Information
Department, member of the Party Central Committee, and member of the
State Affairs Commission. Kim Yo Jong was listed alongside members of
the Party Central Committee’s Political Bureau and other alternate
members at the memorial event on December 17, but was spotted standing
with members of the Party Central Committee in the fifth row while
paying tribute at the Kumsusan Palace on the same day.
After Kim Yo Jong was named member of the Party Central Committee
after the 8th Party Congress in January, the North has not officially
listed Kim as a member or alternate member of the Political Bureau.
Adding on, the position she stands in at major events vary
significantly, making it difficult to determine changes in her status
at this current time. We will continue observing related developments,
including the plenary meeting of the Party Central Committee scheduled
for late December.
Q. Can the Unification Ministry confirm the status of Kim Hyok Chol,
Kim Song Hye, and Shin Hye Young, who were presumed to have been
purged following the failed summit with the U.S. in Hanoi?
A. There is nothing to confirm regarding the posts of North Korea’s
special envoy to the U.S. Kim Hyok Chol, United Front Department
official Kim Song Hye, and interpreter Shin Hye Young. These
individuals have been engaged in activities specific to North
Korea-U.S. and inter-Korean talks, and are not in a position where
their activities are identified through North Korea’s major political
events or media reports. Please understand that it is hard to confirm
official changes to their posts.
