The Chaebol Returns To The Presidency 1967 [EN]: Chapter 83

83. Into Pyongyang

Minister Jung was taken aback.

“Ah, are you conducting operations in the North?”

“President Park planted many human intelligence assets in the North, and we are reaping the benefits. Many who defected to the North during the Korean War are still alive, and they want the reunification of the two Koreas. I don’t know how long it will take, but I hope there will be changes in the North.”

“…….”

“Minister Jung, if we provide oil to the North, should we install a pipeline? Or, is it right to provide oil to the North at all?”

“They will probably demand it practically for free. At best, it would be an exchange for anthracite coal and iron ore.”

“I suppose so.”

“If we refuse, they will likely carry out frequent localized provocations.”

“Hmm….”

“If we give them oil, they will prioritize it for the leadership and weapons development rather than for the people’s livelihood and industry. It would be better to supply only a certain amount below their needs to curb weapons development and increase their dependence on South Korea. South Korea would hold the knife.”

“Hmm, that seems like the best option.”

“Your Excellency, who will go as a special envoy to the North?”

“A Deputy Prime Minister or the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency should go to Pyongyang.”

“With all due respect, Your Excellency, please send me to the North.”

The President’s eyes widened.

“Yes, Minister Jung?”

“It’s not a summit, but a high-level meeting. Anyway, what they are interested in is oil. As the Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy, I have nothing to lose in terms of justification.”

“That’s true, but it’s a risky undertaking. Are you sure you’re okay with that?”

“In my past life, I never met Premier Kim. I want to meet him face to face this time.”

“Since Minister Jung knows the North Korean leadership’s intentions, I couldn’t ask for more.”

Knowing the future and negotiating would surely lead to a favorable meeting.

However, Minister Jung had his own grand plan that he didn’t tell the President.

* * *

Pyongyang.

The Director of the Coordination Bureau of the Central Intelligence Agency from the South and the Responsible Instructor of the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party from the North held secret negotiations for a high-level meeting at Panmunjom [the Joint Security Area between North and South Korea].

It was a meeting to report the results of the coordination to the Chairman.

Premier Kim tilted his head at the Responsible Instructor’s report.

“The Minister of Trade, Industry and Energy?”

“Yes, Supreme Leader!”

“Is it appropriate for a minister to come? Are they looking down on us?”

“The Prime Minister of South Korea is currently vacant. Since he is qualified as a special envoy of the President, his position is meaningless as he is entrusted with the representation of South Korea.”

“Hmm….”

“Also, the South Korean explanation is that Minister Jung is in charge of oil resources, so he is the right person for constructive talks.”

“That’s right! He’s bringing oil as a gift!”

“That seems to be the case. He is a businessman rather than an administrative official, so I think he is more suitable for the meeting.”

“Hmm, a businessman, so his ideological grounding will be weak. All the better!”

“That’s right, Supreme Leader!”

“Entice and coax him to extract as much as possible!”

“Yes, Supreme Leader!”

* * *

The President’s office.

The President and Minister Jung were meeting in advance, two hours before the National Security Council meeting.

Minister Jung was the person who knew the inside story of the July 4th North-South Joint Statement [a declaration for peaceful reunification] before his regression better than anyone else in this era.

He was perfect as a special envoy.

Minister Jung assessed the situation at the time.

“We were taken in by the North back then.”

“…….”

“That guy Lee Woo-rak was 넘어간 [deceived] by the North’s psychological warfare in his ambition to become a hero. He stamped the Three Principles of Reunification without even reporting to Seoul!”

At that time, the North and South were exchanging secret envoys through the Red Cross and holding behind-the-scenes talks.

However, Lee Woo-rak, who had visited Pyongyang as one of the secret envoys, held a large-scale press conference and started with these words.

“I, Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, have visited Pyongyang on the instructions of the President! I met with Premier Kim Il-sung!”

The people were shocked that the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency had met the leader in Pyongyang, the enemy’s territory.

Lee Woo-rak shouted the Three Principles of National Reunification agreed with Premier Kim: independence, peace, and national unity.

At the same time, the same statement was read in Pyongyang (July 4th North-South Joint Statement).

The people cheered and were excited as if reunification would happen right away.

However, the July 4th North-South Joint Statement became a piece of paper in just one year.

“Not only our country but the whole world was buzzing about it, but the inside story was not like that.”

“Lee Woo-rak was seduced with all sorts of sweet talk, calling him a national hero, and when they brought up the Three Principles, he applauded without even knowing what they meant.”

“Were the Three Principles of Reunification not the official position of the two governments?”

“Lee Woo-rak was hearing those words for the first time in the North. The North must have been thoroughly prepared.”

“It was an impromptu decision!”

“It is normal for the leaders of the two Koreas to meet and announce such major principles, but it was carried out in a closed-door meeting, using the fact that Lee Woo-rak went as the President’s special envoy with full authority.”

“Then why didn’t you abolish it right away?”

“Lee Woo-rak was putting on a show in front of the people, and the people were enthusiastically 달아올랐어요 [worked up]. Even if I was the President, it was an atmosphere where I would become a traitor if I said no.”

“So, in the end, it ended as an unrealistic show.”

“That’s right. The purpose of sending Lee Woo-rak was to find out what the North’s movements were in the atmosphere of the US-China détente [easing of Cold War tensions]. I clearly instructed him to do so in his business trip order.”

The following handwritten order was issued to Lee Woo-rak regarding a special area trip of 3 nights and 4 days.

– Under the belief that our system is superior, we will break the illusion that the North is superior and exchange various opinions for peaceful reunification. The focus of this trip will be mainly on understanding the other party’s main way of thinking and the actual situation in North Korea.

“Ah, so he overstepped his authority?”

“That’s right. The North used these Three Principles as a justification for the withdrawal of US troops and stimulated the Nixon Doctrine [policy of détente with communist nations]. Nixon, who was considering reducing US troops, thought it was a good thing and declared the withdrawal of US troops.”

“Oh, dear!”

“Originally, Lee Woo-rak was not supposed to go to Pyongyang.”

“Ah, really?”

“I was thinking of a Deputy Prime Minister or a Prime Minister for the high-level talks, but that guy suddenly took out potassium cyanide and said he would go with the determination to die, so I sent him as the Director of the Intelligence Agency to check the trends.”

“So he went without thorough preparation.”

“I thought he was well-versed in ideological guidance because he was the Director of the Central Intelligence Agency. But he fell for a typical wordplay. He was only thinking about shaking hands with Premier Kim.”

“Oh my, it was completely халтура [a botch job].”

“What’s even more absurd is that after returning from Pyongyang, the head of the Central Intelligence Agency insisted that the National Security Law should be abolished.”

“What on earth happened in the North?”

“Lee Woo-rak met with Premier Kim alone in the middle of the night without any escorts and had secret talks, so we don’t know what was said or what kind of backroom deals were made.”

“Hmm, there was a secret time that is not recorded in history.”

“That’s right. Later, I found out that Lee Woo-rak was a man with great political ambitions. He used the North to imprint his status as the next successor on the people.”

The two drank tea.

Minister Jung said.

“I read in detail the data prepared by the US White House Secretariat among the data given by the Blue House this time. I was surprised by the detailed schedule of Kennedy’s visit to China and the record of the process of meeting Mao Zedong.”

“Ah, I also enjoyed reading that data.”

“The process of Lee Woo-rak meeting with Premier Kim at that time coincided with it in a chilling way. I really got goosebumps all over my spine.”

“Really? Then it was a thoroughly prepared production?”

“It was a calculated surprise. They seize a place that is advantageous for their promotion, test the negotiator’s ability, make them impatient, and if brainwashing works, they lift their spirits to get their demands through. It was exactly the technique of negotiation in their revolutionary textbook.”

“Hmm, then how are you going to respond this time?”

“I’m going to do this.”

Minister Jung explained step by step.

The President nodded and listened carefully without missing a word.

* * *

Panmunjom.

The head of the Labor Party’s Organization Guidance Department (Premier Kim’s younger brother), Jung Minister’s counterpart, welcomed Minister Jung in the North Korean area.

“Welcome to North Korea.”

“Thank you for inviting me.”

The two shook hands and got into the car.

Vroom~

The three cars carrying Minister Jung’s party passed through Panmunjom.

Minister Jung’s heart was pounding.

Tension, excitement, responsibility, anxiety, and all sorts of emotions crossed his mind.

He didn’t prepare potassium cyanide like Lee Woo-rak.

He took a deep breath and calmly practiced the conversation in his head.

The peacefully flowing Daedong River was visible.

The accommodation they arrived at was the Moranbong Guest House.

There are at least 30 villas of the Kim family in North Korea, called guest houses or special pavilions, and more than 10 in Pyongyang alone.

Most of them were secret facilities that even North Koreans didn’t know about.

After a simple welcoming ceremony at the Moranbong Guest House, they unpacked.

There was no official schedule for a meeting with Premier Kim, and the schedule was packed with propaganda to promote the system, such as visiting Mangyongdae, the Agricultural Exhibition Hall, and revolutionary operas.

What they were watching was how Minister Jung would react to that propaganda schedule.

Minister Jung applauded generously while watching the revolutionary opera.

Clap! Clap! Clap!

When the curtain came down, Minister Jung told the head of the Organization Guidance Department his impressions of the performance.

“The Premier is a national hero and the best patriot.”

The head of the Organization Guidance Department was very pleased with Minister Jung’s praise.

On the last day, after finishing the meeting with the head of the Labor Party’s Organization Guidance Department and returning to the Moranbong Guest House, it was almost 10 p.m.

“Hmm, it’s time for them to call.”

Minister Jung took a shower and rested as comfortably as possible, making full preparations.

* * *

Premier’s Residence.

Kim Il-sung was holding an expanded Standing Committee meeting of the Party Political Committee with the head of the Organization Guidance Department in attendance.

Premier Kim asked the head of the Organization Guidance Department.

“How is the meeting going?”

“Minister Jung doesn’t seem to have been instigated by the United States.”

“Really?”

“Looking at his attitude of visiting various places, he is 순응하여 [compliant] and there is nothing 특별히 책잡을 데가 없습니다 [particularly objectionable]. He even shed tears while watching the revolutionary opera and praised the Premier as a national hero and the best patriot. He was 헐렁했습니다 [lax] because he was a businessman.”

The Premier nodded with satisfaction.

However, the Deputy Premier was furious.

“Head of the Organization Department, did you go inside that person and come out! How do you know what’s on his mind just by listening to him? Don’t be 넘어가 [fooled] and say it’s good just because his attitude of 관람 [observing] is good! Can you guarantee that he didn’t bring a poison needle or a bomb?”

“I’m sorry. I was careless.”

The head of the United Front Department said.

“Still, I think it would be good for the Premier to meet him tonight. Didn’t you negotiate even when fighting the enemy when you were a partisan in the old days?”

The Premier, who had been listening to the debate, said.

“I don’t know if it’s fake or real, but looking at the 드러난 [outward] attitude, there doesn’t seem to be anything to criticize. I think he will accept if we propose the principles of independence, peace, and national unity. Let’s 매기자우 [nail down] these principles this time. It would be good to meet Minister Jung tonight. Bring Minister Jung!”

“Yes, Supreme Leader!”

“Don’t give Minister Jung time to prepare and bring him unexpectedly. That way, we can check what he has on his body.”

“Yes, Supreme Leader!”

“And when you bring him, go around the back road of Moranbong, but don’t tell him the destination and scare him a lot.”