Believing that denuclearization is "
essential
" for a lasting peace on the peninsula, South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol announced on Monday that he would offer a major aid package to Pyongyang in exchange for denuclearization, a type of offer long disdained by North Korea.
The Head of State detailed his offer which would include food, energy, but also aid for the modernization of infrastructure such as ports, airports and hospitals.
The plan "
will dramatically improve North Korea's economy and the standard of living of its people in stages, if the North ceases to develop its nuclear program and embarks on a genuine and substantial process of denuclearization
," the official said. President Yoon during a speech marking the anniversary of the end of Japanese colonial rule in 1945.
Positive response unlikely
For specialists in the region, the chances of seeing Pyongyang accept this offer, already mentioned during President Yoon's inauguration speech, are very slim, since the North, which invests a large part of its GDP in its armament program , has long made it clear that it would not enter into such an agreement.
Last week, Pyongyang threatened to "
eradicate
" South Korean officials, accusing Seoul of being behind the country's Covid-19 outbreak.
North Korea conducted a record series of weapons tests this year, including the firing of a full-range intercontinental ballistic missile, the first since 2017.
Washington and Seoul have repeatedly warned in recent months that the North is preparing to carry out another nuclear test, which would be the seventh in its history.
