President Moon Jae-in returned to Korea on the 22nd after completing a six-night eight-day tour to three countries in the Middle East. This tour, which had greater liquidity than any other tour, left both achievements and disappointments in fields such as defense. President Moon is concentrating on handling pending issues, such as responding to mutations in Omicron, easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula, and establishing discipline for public service at the end of his term.
According to the Blue House on the 23rd, President Moon returned to Seoul Airport in Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do the day before after visiting three countries: the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Saudi Arabia and Egypt from the 15th. President Moon focused on seeking cooperation in fields such as defense industry and hydrogen economy with visiting countries. During the visit to the UAE, the largest single-weapon contract for domestic production, the 4 trillion-won Cheongung-II (M-SAM2, medium-range surface-to-air missile) export contract was concluded. During his visit to Saudi Arabia, he announced the resumption of negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA) between Korea and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), which had been suspended in 2010. President Moon himself also conducted activities to attract the 2030 Busan Expo.
A number of unexpected events occurred during this tour. The summit meeting with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of Abu Dhabi was abruptly canceled due to unavoidable reasons on the UAE side. While President Moon was in the UAE, Yemeni Houthi rebels attacked Abu Dhabi, but there was no damage as President Moon canceled his Abu Dhabi schedule and stayed in Dubai. There were no tangible results from the expected defense exports to Saudi Arabia and Egypt. However, it is reported that discussions on the export of K-9 self-propelled artillery with Egypt have made progress.
In front of President Moon, who returned to Korea, there are a lot of formidable pending issues. First of all, as the omicron mutation, which spreads rapidly in Korea, has established itself as the dominant species, the number of confirmed cases is again increasing significantly. The time is right for the government to quickly switch to a quarantine system that focuses on preventing aggravation and death. Earlier, on the 20th, while on a tour, President Moon ordered, “The government should quickly switch to the Omicron response system, and all ministries should take full action, led by the Prime Minister.” President Moon is expected to focus on the medical response system, such as securing a bed, and support measures for small businesses, including a government supplementary budget of 14 trillion won to be submitted to the National Assembly on the 24th.
Another task is to stably manage the worsening situation on the Korean Peninsula as North Korea test-fired four missiles in the new year, and even hinted at the possibility of resuming nuclear tests and intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) tests, which it had halted for nearly four years. President Moon left the National Security Office Director Suh Hoon, who was scheduled to accompany him on the tour, to South Korea, and received real-time reports on North Korea-related matters. Under such circumstances, inter-Korean and North Korea-US dialogues continue, and it is expected that the power struggle between the relevant countries will continue until the end of the Moon Jae-in administration’s term. Accordingly, the need for a video summit between President Moon and Chinese President Xi Jinping has increased. However, it is said that it is difficult to hold the event this month.
President Moon is also expected to take steps to rectify the wavering public service discipline ahead of the presidential and local elections. Recently, controversy arose over the resignation of a standing member of the National Election Commission, Jo Hae-ju, causing agitation within the NEC. We also need to solve the staffing issue, such as Yoon Nan-sil, secretary for system reform, who expressed his gratitude for running for the first time in the June 1 local election among those at the Blue House level or higher. President Moon appointed Kim Young-sik, senior civil affairs officer, on the 17th while on a tour, and announced through the Blue House, “I expect that he will carry out his duties smoothly, such as establishing discipline for public office.”
