During the audit and investigation into the Wolsong Nuclear Reactor’s economic fraud case, it was discovered that the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy prepared a document related the building of a nuclear power plant in North Korea. In particular, many of the related files deleted were confirmed to have been written between the first and second inter-Korean summits in 2018. It’s been revealed that during the first inter-Korean summit, President Moon Jae-in had given North Korean leader Kim Jong-un a USB which included a plan to ‘build a power plant’. If a nuclear reactor is built in North Korea, it’s basically providing plutonium for them to build nuclear weapons. This poses a serious risk to the lives of not only to the Korean people, but also to the people around the world.
The Board of Audit and Inspection Reveals Deleted Energy Ministry’s File
According to the January 28, 2021 exclusive report by SBS, the Energy Ministry produced 17 files related to plans for a North Korean nuclear power plant. These files were all contained in a folder named ’60 pohjois’. ‘Pohjois’ is pronounced ‘po-yo-is’ and it means ‘north’ in Finnish.
Among the deleted files, there was a folder titled ‘North Nuclear Plan’ probably shortened from ‘North Korea’s Nuclear Power Plant Building Plan’ and contained files of two versions of ‘Plans on the Construction of Nuclear Power Plants in the North Korean Region’. Another folder contained files titles ‘Phased Cooperative Tasks for Building North Korea’s Electrical Infrastructure’ and ‘Current Status of North Korea’s Electrical Industry and Case Study of Germany’s Integration’. In addition, files of a list of people with experience at the Korean Peninsula Energy Development Organization (KEDO), a list of inter-Korean economic cooperation experts in energy, and a resume of experts in this field was made then deleted.
This was revealed during the Board of Audit and Inspection’s (BAI) audit of the Wolsong Nuclear Reactor due to a case of manipulating its economic assessment. As soon as the audit began, two Energy Ministry officials sneaked into an office and deleted 444 files. The BAI submitted a suggestion to the prosecutor’s office that it be made possible to charge those officials with ‘obstruction of investigation and abuse of authority’. According to the prosecution’s investigation, there were 530 files that were deleted and among them were plans to build nuclear power plants in North Korea.
There are now suspicions that the Moon administration planned to “gift” nuclear power plants to North Korea. Because President Moon could have discussed plans for building nuclear power plants with Kim Jong-un when the first inter-Korean summit was held at Panmunjeom on April 27, 2018.
At that time, President Moon handed Kim a USB that contained a presentation booklet and video of the ‘New Economic Initiative’. According to a Hankyoreh report, this material contained information on economic cooperation, such as building a power plant, which can happen if sanctions against North Korea is lifted.
Fortunately, of the 17 files deleted by the Energy Ministry officials, 6 files were created between May 2 and 15, 2018. This was between the first inter-Korean summit and the second summit that was held on May 26, 2018. This is why there are speculations that President Moon pushed for nuclear power plants to be built in North Korea.
Details of the Plan
Among the 17 ‘North Korean nuclear reactor’ files deleted on December 1, 2019 by the Energy Ministry officials, the file ‘180514_Building Nuclear Reactor in North Korean Region’ created on May 14, 2018 after the inter-Korean summit, contrary to the claims of Cheong Wa Dae and the ruling party, detailed three proposals to provide nuclear power or electricity to North Korea. The first proposed to construct it in Sinpo, where KEDO planned to build a light water reactor. The second proposed to construct it in the DMZ and the third proposed to complete Shin Hanul 3 and 4 and send it to North Korea.
According to the U.S.-North Korea Agreed Framework, KEDO was to construct two light water reactor nuclear power plants in Kumho, Sinpo in the South Hamgyeong province between 2001 to 2006, but the project was terminated. 790 billion won was invested into installing the third-generation light water reactor on Shin Hanul 3 and 4, but construction of the new nuclear power plants has been suspended due to the current administration’s policy to dismantle nuclear reactors.
The Energy Ministry’s files on the North Korean nuclear reactor plans was created between the first inter-Korean summit (April 27, 2018) and the second summit (May 26).
Why Did They Name a Folder in Finnish?
The Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Finland has also been working as the Embassy of North Korea since 2006. Some criticize that it may have something to do with the fact that Finland plays the role of ‘mediator’ between the United States and North Korea. President Moon Jae-in and Kim Jong-un held the first inter-Korean summit on April 27, 2018. A month before in March 2018, Choe Kang Il, deputy director of the North American bureau of North Korea’s Foreign Affairs Ministry, arrived in Helsinki, Finland. The track 1.5 meetings were held from March 19 to 21 with former and current officials from South Korea, the U.S., and North Korea as well as civilian experts to discuss the issues on the Korean peninsula, with the Finnish government and UN officials attending the meeting as observers. Also in attendance were former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea Kathleen Stephens, former Korean Ambassador to Japan Shin Kak-soo, former Korean Ambassador to China Shin Jung-seung, and former Blue House chief presidential national security advisor Baek Jong-chun.
President Moon made a state visit to three northern European countries, Finland, Norway, and Sweden, between June 9 and 16, 2019. This happened three months after the U.S.-DPRK summit in Hanoi ended with a ‘no deal’. During the summit with Finland’s President Sauli Niinistö, President Moon stated that, “The Helsinki Process, led by Finland, is the result of the end of the Cold War and the harmony between the East and the West,” and that “this is a profound inspiration for the peace process on the Korean Peninsula.” The Helsinki Process, also known as the ‘Helsinki Accords’, is the Final Act of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe signed in 1975 by NATO and the original 35 participating states of the Warsaw Pact.
At the press conference after the summit meeting between President Moon and President Niinistö, questions about a third U.S.-DPRK summit was asked. President Moon stated that, “Finland lent their assistance last year by providing two opportunities of trilateral talks between South Korea, North Korea, and the U.S. for a deeper understanding,” and that, “if help is needed (for the third U.S.-DPRK summit) we will seek assistance from Finland.” In response, President Niinistö said, “[Finland] is ready to offer our unreserved support should it be required.”
Before his death on July 9, 2020, former Seoul mayor Park Won-soon’s mobile phone was disconnected in front of the Embassy of Finland. Ko Han-seok, chief-of-staff to the former Seoul mayor, was a known North Korean spy. Kim Han-sol, Kim Jong-nam’s son, while on the run had an exclusive interview with a Finnish network in 2012. These can’t be all coincidences.
President Moon used the Pyongchang Olympics as an opportunity to introduce the merit of nuclear power plants and conducted a diplomacy of nuclear reactor sales to Polish President Duda during his visit to Korea. Poland has since selected the site of its first nuclear power plant (1~1.5GW) in 2020 and is working to meet its goal to finish construction by 2033. However, Germany and Austria are arguing that Poland’s new atomic power business is a violation against international laws and has officially made a claim. According to the UN Espoo Convention, first established in 1991, countries that are pursuing large-scale construction projects need to conduct environmental assessments that can affect neighboring countries and must receive cooperation in advance. Germany and Austria claim that Poland has skipped all of this.
Former NIS Director Suh Hoon
While having talks with Kim Jong-un, President Moon’s chief secretary of national security, Suh Hoon, who was also the former director of the National Intelligence Service, and his history had come under fire. It is inevitable that the NIS is bound to be involved in discussions with North Korea.
During the Kim Young-sam administration, North Korea was suffering from power shortages and Director Suh was sent to North Korea in 1997 and lived there for 2 years heading the Kumho office of KEDO’s project in building the light water reactor.
Director Suh attended the October 2000 meeting between then Unification minister Park Jae-kyu and Kim Jong-il, the 2005 meeting between then Unification minister Jung Dong-young and Kim Jong-il, and at the 2007 summit meeting between President Roh Moo-hyun and Kim. According to diplomatic and security sources, Kim Jong-il is said to have made unusually positive assessments of Suh.
Even at the start of the Moon administration, Suh was included in the special envoy sent to North Korea in April 2018, and during the first inter-Korean summit, he was present at the conference with Lim Jong-seok, the former chief-of-staff of the Blue House. He also met with Kim Jong-un with President Moon at the second inter-Korean summit.
There are rumors that it was Director Suh who had delivered the letter written personally by Kim to former President Donald Trump on September 11, 2019. According to News 1’s report, a diplomatic source stated that, “NIS director Suh flew to the U.S. on the 8th and is currently there,” and that “Suh had contact with the North right before the trip.”
International Position
Former deputy director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Olli Heinonen stated that nuclear power plants are not an independent discussion between the two Koreas. Heinonen emphasized that North Korea must return to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in order to build nuclear reactors on North Korean soil. He said, “It shouldn’t be forgotten that if North Korea does not return to the NPT, they cannot build a nuclear reactor on North Korean soil. It’s also a condition of the nuclear export control system. Not only does North Korea have to be a member of the NPT the day they construct a nuclear power plant but must agree to comply to nuclear safety measures. Heinonen also added that, “The UN Security Council’s Resolutions 1718 and 2397 prevent North Korea from engaging in certain nuclear activities, and most importantly, it is stated that all nuclear weapons and existing nuclear programs should immediately be scrapped.”
Chun Young-woo, former chief presidential secretary for foreign affairs and security during the Lee Myung-bak administration, stated that, “It is impossible to build a nuclear power plant in North Korea even though sanctions imposed by the UN Security Council and the U.S. are lifted. Legal conditions must be met, such as North Korea’s return to the NPT and the signing of the North Korea-U.S. Nuclear Cooperation Agreement. And if the Energy Ministry did not know and reviewed these legal and institutional standards, the level of ignorance is appalling.”
Conclusion
The Moon Jae-in administration did not consult with its ally, the United States or the United Nations about its support to construct a nuclear power plant in North Korea, a massive international issue on sanctions against North Korea. This is clearly a violation of international law. If they provide plutonium to North Korea who is in possession of nuclear weapons, North Korea would be able to produce more nuclear weapons which is a serious security threat to the international community. Furthermore, the policy of de-nuclearization in Korea has stopped the operation of nuclear power plants or nullified the project itself will eventually be a crime because it will hand over nuclear power technology to China and build nuclear power plants in North Korea for them to become an energy dependent state. This will be a serious issue not only for the lives of the Korean citizens but for all citizens around the world. This requires an international ruling.
