What Does North Korea Pursue Using Peace?—Focusing on Rodong Sinmun during the Kim Jong Un Era of 2012–2022

Ezra Kim,Sokchun Chang,여현철 한국국방연구원 2023 The Korean Journal of Defense Analysis Vol.35 No.3

This study aimed to examine North Korea’s strategy through an in-depth analysis of how North Korea is utilizing peace during the Kim Jong Un regime. To this end, this study analyzed the definition of peace as stated in the dictionary and its implied meaning, i.e., the overall context of the claim by analyzing the keyword peace as it appears in Rodong Sinmun, which is North Korea’s propaganda outlet and serves as the channel to officially announce its stance. Through the analysis, this study identified changes in North Korea’s strategy of using peace under the Kim Jong Un regime. The major results of the analysis are as follows: First, the Kim Jong Un regime has maintained the stance and strategies towards unification and South Korea that were adopted during the Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il eras. Second, from the third period, North Korea, which self-proclaimed that it had secured its position as a legitimate nuclear state based on the 2017 declaration of completing the state nuclear force, deployed a more coercive strategy toward South Korea compared to the previous periods. Third, North Korea is using peace as a policy means to strengthen internal solidarity, secure the legitimacy of the Kim Jong Un regime, and justify its nuclear possession. Fourth, the sharp decline in the frequency of references to peace since 2019, amid the prolonged strained relations between the two Koreas, suggests a change in North Korea’s strategic perspective. Through this study, we derived the domestic and foreign meaning of peace that North Korea claims and identified the characteristics of North Korea’s stance and strategy in dialogue and negotiations. Thus, these findings will help shape South Korea’s mid- to long-term policy toward North Korea and establish a response strategy within the political landscape of Northeast Asia which is changing on a high-level scale due to North Korea’s completion of nuclear weapons. Also, the findings will provide an opportunity for an in-depth approach and response to the peace strategy that North Korea claims.

김정은 시기 북한의 평화 담론 연구

김에스라(Ezra Kim) 성신여자대학교 동아시아연구소 2023 국가와 정치 Vol.29 No.1

본 연구는 김정은 시기 ‘평화’를 앞세운 북한의 목적과 의도를 분석하여 이를 토대로 북한의 목표와 의도를 유추하여 향후 북한의 행태를 전망해 보는 것을 목적으로한다. 분석 결과 북한은 평화 담론을 통해 ▲남북관계와 한반도 정세에 있어 평화가정착되지 않고 있는 주요 원인이 미국에 있다고 주장하고 있으며, ▲남한에 대해서는 미국과의 연합훈련을 비난하는 한편, 지속적으로 ‘우리 민족 끼리’를 주장하고 있고, ▲지속적으로 자신들의 통일과, 평화, 번영에 대한 입장의 국제적 지지를 강조하면서 자신들의 평화담론의 정당성을 확보하고자 함을 확인할 수 있었다. 이상의 분석을 통해 본 연구에서는 북한은 남북관계가 경색 국면일 때이던, 반대로 상당한 진전을 보이던 때이던 상관없이 이러한 평화 담론을 지속적으로 전개하고 있음을 확인하였다. 또한 북한이 그동안 남북관계와 상관없이 꾸준히 평화 담론을 활용해 왔으나, 2019년 이후 평화 담론을 거의 활용하지 않고 있다는 점에서 향후 북한은 평화 담론을 구사하며 남북관계와 한반도 정세의 변화를 시도하기 보다는 현재의 경색된 상황이 지속되는 것을 선호할 것이며, 현재의 남북관계와 한반도 정세의 경색국면 역시 장기화 될 것으로 전망된다. The purpose of this study was to analyze and infer the objective and intention of North Korea claiming ‘peace’ in Kim Jong?un’s era so as to predict their future actions. As a result of the analysis, ▲North Korea claimed the main cause of unsettled peace in the Korean Peninsula to be on U.S. ▲they blamed South Korea on the joint exercise with U.S. while they asserted ‘uriminzokkiri’ continuously ▲they empathized the international support on their positions to the unification, peace, and prosperity so as to secure the justification of their peace discourse. This study confirmed that North Korea maintained the peace discourse continuously regardless of inter-Korean relations whether it was in the middle of confrontation or peaceful mood. North Korea utilized the peace discourse consistently regardless of inter-Korean relations, however, they had seldom utilized the discourse since 2019. It is prospected that North Korea prefers to the continued confrontation situation at present rather than trying to change the political situation in the peninsula as well as the relationship between the two and the present confrontation situation might be prolonged for a long time.

‘핵 보유국’ 인도와 ‘핵 강국’ 북한의 경로 유사성 비교 연구

김동욱(Tong Ook Kim),김에스라(Ezra Kim) 국민대학교 한반도미래연구원 2022 한반도미래연구 Vol.6 No.1

핵 강국으로 자칭하는 북한의 핵 경로는 핵보유국으로 인정받은 인도의 단계적 핵 전략과 매우 유사하다. 핵 모호성과 핵 이중성, 핵 정당성 전략은 북한과 인도가 추구해온 순서만 조금 차이가 날 뿐이지 내용은 거의 동일하다. 또한 북한과 인도 모두 핵을 개발한 이후 미국과의 협상이라는 과정을 밟았거나 밟고 있다는 점에서도 유사점을 찾을 수 있다. 하지만 인도의 경우 4단계 핵 보유 인정 전략에서 미국과의 핵 에너지 협정을 직접 맺으면서 핵보유국을 인정받았다면 북한은 한반도 비핵화를 두고 미국과 협상을 벌인다는 점에서 근본적인 차이점을 갖고 있다. 결국 북한의 핵 경로는 미국과의 협상이 향후 어떻게 전개되느냐에 따라 완전한 비핵화를 달성하게 될지, 아니면 핵 보유국의 길을 걷게 될지, 아니면 협상 결렬로 극심한 북미 대치 국면으로 치달을지 달려있다. 김일성 생일 110주년이자 김정일 생일 80주년으로 이른바 꺾이는 해라는 상징적 의미를 지닌 2022년이기에 북한의 입장에서는 단시간 내 대화 재개를 위한 명분 혹은 계기 마련이 쉽지 않다면, 대화의 주도권을 잡기위해 추가적인 미사일 발사를 감행할 가능성도 있다. 그러므로 향후 북한의 핵경로에 있어 핵심인 북미 협상은 단기적 진척과 성과를 기대하기 보다는 장기적 관점에서 진행되어야 하며, 이 과정 가운데 북한의 돌발 행동에 대한 엄정한 대처를 통해 향후 협상 과정에서의 주도권을 확보하는 것이 무엇보다 중요할 것이다. North Korea's nuclear route, which calls itself a nuclear powerhouse, is very similar to India's phased nuclear strategy, which has been recognized as a nuclear powerhouse. Nuclear ambiguity, nuclear duality, and nuclear justification strategies differ slightly in the order in which North Korea and India have pursued, but the content is almost the same. In addition, similarities can be found in that both North Korea and India have been in the process of negotiating with the United States since developing nuclear weapons. But in India four nuclear power in the case of recognition strategies directly by the nuclear energy agreement with the United States had recognized a nuclear power in North Korea that negotiating with the United States and nuclear-free Korean peninsula have the fundamental difference. In the end, North Korea's nuclear route depends on how the negotiations with the U.S. develop in the future, whether it will achieve complete denuclearization, walk the path of a nuclear powerhouse, or lead to a severe U.S.-North Korea confrontation due to the breakdown of negotiations. Since 2022 is the 110th anniversary of Kim Il-sung's birthday and the 80th anniversary of Kim Jong-il's birthday, North Korea may launch additional missiles to take the lead in dialogue if it is not easy to prepare a justification or opportunity to resume dialogue within a short period of time. Therefore, North Korea-U.S. negotiations, which are key to North Korea's nuclear path in the future, should proceed from a long-term perspective rather than expect short-term progress and results, and it will be most important to secure leadership in future negotiations through strict response to North Korea's unexpected actions.

John Gresham Machen's Apologetical Method

Kim, Ezra Kil-sung Presbyterian General Assembly Theological Seminary 2003 CHONGSHIN THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL Vol.8 No.1

J.Gresham Machen and The Concernsin His Early Works

Kim, Ezra Kil-sung Presbyterian General Assembly Theological Seminary 2000 CHONGSHIN THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL Vol.5 No.1

John Calvin's Ecclesiology

Kim, Ezra Kil-sung Presbyterian General Assembly Theological Seminary 2002 CHONGSHIN THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL Vol.7 No.1

The Relationship Between Theology and Culture in Machen's Theology

Kim, Ezra Kil-sung Presbyterian General Assembly Theological Seminary 2001 CHONGSHIN THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL Vol.6 No.1

J. Gresham Machen's Ecclesiological Concern in His Later Years

Kim, Ezra Kil-sung Presbyterian General Assembly Theological Seminary 1997 CHONGSHIN THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL Vol.2 No.2

John Calvin and the Unity of the Church

Ezra Kilsung Kim Presbyterian General Assembly Theological Seminary 2010 CHONGSHIN THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL Vol.15 No.1

This article deals with the unity of the church, taught by John Calvin. The writer pointed out five points on Calvin's view of the church. And he continued to say that Calvin suggested the two marks of the church. Calvin said that wherever we see the Word of God purely preached and heard, and the sacraments administered according to Christ's institution, there, a church of God exists. Then Calvin also emphasized the importance of church discipline in the church in addition to the two marks of the church. He admitted that the right ministry of the Word and the right administration of the sacraments are the two marks of the church for discerning the true church from the false church. He did not regard church discipline as the third mark of the church. But he recognized that it is necessary for the peace and order of the church, while it is not the essence of the church. The Reformed theologians since Calvin regarded church discipline as the third mark of the church. The primary concern of Calvin concerning the unity of the church was that the church should be faithful to the Lord and to the inspired Word of God.

The Theology and Thought of Dr. Hyung-nong Park as a Systematic Theologian

Kim, Ezra Kil-sung Presbyterian General Assembly Theological Seminary 1999 CHONGSHIN THEOLOGICAL JOURNAL Vol.4 No.1