[Opinion] `Sunshine` Being Disregarded from Outside

Japanese Prime Minister Koizumi Junichiro unusually stressed the importance of cooperation of Korea, U.S. and Japan over the policy toward North Korea to U.S. President George W. Bush, who visited Japan last week. Though it is not a particular thing, an expert (Hideshi Takesada, 3rd head of the National Institute for Defense Studies in Japan) of Korean Peninsula paradoxically interpreted the meaning of Prime Minister Koizumi’s speech. That was an indirect expression meaning that `Korea and U.S. should be on good terms with each other in handling North Korea matters`. That means Japan also recognizes well the discord between Korea and U.S. on the Sunshine Policy of President Kim Dae-Jung. Although the officers of Japanese Foreign Ministry are minding their languages, experts, who freely express their thoughts, on the whole are skeptical to the Sunshine Policy. `Too prodigal` view is dominant outside of Korea, while `wasteful` inside. It is obvious that the government is making effort to turn its face away from the fact.

The reason why the Sunshine Policy has been driven into a corner is that the government failed in understanding the change of the atmosphere of international politics, and adapting itself to the change with weak-kneed foreign and security policy. After the collapse of cold war structure, others flexibly broadened their political outlook. `Japan-U.S. Alliance, ` which couldn’t be spoken out just 10 years age, is now common in Japan. That is the fruit of the effort to making it public opinion to accept the reality that U.S. exerts its influence globally. Strictly Speaking, Japanese government stands more closely to U.S. over the Sunshine Policy. On the contrary, we have been stick to `50 year blood alliance` so far ignoring the change of U.S. foreign and security policy. If we had intended to make use of U.S., we should have penetrated the strategic change of the policies of Bush government. It is reality that we need the aids of Japan and U.S. in settling the South-North matters. Prime Minister Bismarck, who needed international cooperation heading unification of Deutsch in 1871, was dare to support French revolutionaries outside, while administering first-law inside. That is the diplomacy.

Present government localized the Sunshine Policy just in Korean peninsula. If it had externally exerted to regionalize and globalize the North policy, it might have gotten more international supports. It will be a formidable weapon of foreign policy, if we logically insist that we are sacrificing ourselves to restrain the war as a part of global strategies. Sunshine Policy should change its clothes both in and out along with the med and long term prospect on North Korea. It cannot take even one step forward under current situation. President Kim knows the fact more than anyone else does.

Choi Gyu-Cheol (Chief editorial writer)

kihang@donga.com