Former South Korean President Moon calls North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's ”spokesperson” a ruling party lawmaker, criticizing pro-North Korea descriptions in memoir

Regarding the memoir recently published by former South Korean President Moon Jae-in, some ruling party lawmakers have commented that the book contains pro-North Korea statements, saying, "Moon is Kim
Kim Yong-ho, the Minister of Unification, also said on the 20th that Kim Jong-un had "no intention of using nuclear weapons."
Regarding Moon's claim in his memoir that he had said, "There is absolutely no support for the North Korean government," he expressed concern that "if we entrust the lives and security of our people to the goodwill of North Korea, it will cause problems."
Moon, who stepped down as president in May 2022, published a memoir titled "From the Periphery to the Center" on the 18th of this month.
In the memoir, Moon answers questions from Choi Jong-gon, who served as first vice minister of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the Moon administration, about events that occurred during his term from May 2017 to May 2022, focusing on the diplomatic field.
The memoirs are written in the form of Moon answering questions. The memoirs also include a record of his interactions with Kim at the inter-Korean summit. According to the memoirs, at the inter-Korean summit in April 2018, Kim
"Nuclear weapons are a means to thoroughly guarantee our own security. We have no intention of using them. If we can live without nuclear weapons, why should we continue to live with nuclear weapons on our heads and endure so many sanctions?"
"I have a daughter myself. I don't want my daughter's generation to live with nuclear weapons on their heads," Moon said. "Chairman Kim Jong Un's promise to denuclearize if appropriate measures are taken is
"I think he was serious," he recalled. In 2018-19, a U.S.-North Korea summit was held with Moon's mediation, and there were hopes that North Korea would move toward denuclearization, but the negotiations broke down.
Looking back on the failure of the negotiations, Moon said that the US side was also responsible. Regarding his impression of Kim, Moon said, "He was very polite and had learned to respect his elders.
He always arrived first and waited for me, and when I left he would see me off until I was out of sight. He was someone worth having a conversation with," he recalled.
In his memoir, Moon also mentioned the distribution of leaflets by defector groups aimed at North Korea.
"These low-quality anti-North Korea leaflets will bring shame to us," he said. In June 2020, Kim Yo-jong, the younger sister of Kim Jong-il, said, "We are embarrassed by these low-quality anti-North Korea leaflets."
A few days later, North Korea blew up the inter-Korean liaison office in Kaesong, southwest of the country. In her statement at the time, Kim Yo-jong said, "We will punish the traitors and the trash for the crimes they committed."
"We must make them realize the magnitude of this. They will soon realize the seriousness of the damage they have done to our great dignity," he warned.
The Moon administration then embarked on a legal reform to ban the scattering of leaflets into North Korea, citing the danger it could pose to residents along the military demarcation line.
However, this law raised concerns from the international community, including the United Nations, and in September last year, the Constitutional Court of South Korea ruled that the law "excessively restricts freedom of expression."
As mentioned above, while Moon criticized the leaflet distribution in his memoirs, he also criticized the law that he enacted during his term of office and the fact that the law was passed by the Constitutional Court.
He did not mention that the court had ruled the law unconstitutional. Some have pointed out that the memoirs avoided mentioning controversial or unfavorable aspects.
Regarding Moon's claim that he had "no intention of using nuclear weapons," lawmakers from the ruling People Power Party questioned whether he "really still believes in North Korea's intention to denuclearize."
Kim Yong-ho, Minister of Unification, also criticized the move on the 20th, saying, "If we completely believe in the North's intentions, it will bring about extremely negative security consequences for us."