In search of peaceful solutions to the North Korean crisis

February 3 , 2018

On February 2, Komeito Chief Representative Natsuo Yamaguchi met with Kevin Clements, peace studies scholar and director of the Toda Peace Institute, and Sverre Lodgaard, senior research fellow of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, to exchange opinions on the denuclearization of North Korea. Mitsunari Okamoto and Daisaku Hiraki, vice directors of the party’s International Affairs Bureau, also attended the meeting in Tokyo.

In their meeting, Yamaguchi stated that the UN Security Council must remain firm on its position to impose sanctions against North Korea and that the international community must work closely to find peaceful solutions to the conflict through pursuing dialogue. In the process of such talks, he noted, it was important to gain clarity on whether or not North Korea has abandoned its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile development operations.

Dr. Lodgaard concurred with Yamaguchi’s statement and argued for the need to put a freeze on North Korea’s development of uranium, plutonium and other nuclear materials as well.

Suggesting that the speech made by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un on February 1 indicated Pyongyang’s awareness of the need for economic growth and an improvement in the quality of life of their citizenry, Dr. Clements noted that now may be an opportune moment to pursue dialogue.

Yamaguchi responded by saying that a key goal is to spread the message that denuclearization is what will lead to a better, more prosperous life for North Koreans.